Beat the Odds
by drunkenCharm
Summary: omegaverse. Izaya is born an Omega in a society ruled by archaic Alphas. Instead of accepting his fate, he fights for a chance to live a free life. All goes well, until he ignores the signs of the next heat, and ends up being caught in a tricky situation.
1. Chapter 1

He was born an Omega. Izaya detested his primary instincts to be submissive to any Alpha or Beta that crossed his path, to be expected to open his legs to the next best random mate that felt the urge to breed him. Not that they actually could. The gift of carrying new life to term was reserved for the female Omegas of this world. In his years of life Izaya had heard rumors of male Omegas who were able to carry an Alpha's litter, but they were always stories who were told by a friend who knew someone who had talked to a far relative with an acquaintance who had heard it on the subway.

Naturally, Izaya, always a doubter, did not believe those tales.

Neither did he believe that his only choice in life was to eventually find his "one true Alpha", and take the place of their submissive mate.

No, Izaya was too smart for that.

His arrogance and pride eventually helped him to mask his submissive nature, to overcome his most basic instincts and fool not only himself, but everybody around him. Where Mother Nature wouldn't allow any mind tricks, he helped himself with simple things such as pheromones, easily found by the right people who knew where to look on the black market. Nobody asked or even cared what he needed the subtle vaporizers with the desired concoction for. It would be the first time that Izaya didn't have to explain and excuse his nature. In a strange way, he felt welcomed. With the years, Izaya dove deeper into the manipulative atmosphere of the alleys. He discovered something about himself; a talent. If there had been anyone who knew him well enough to speak about his character, they would have said "Izaya is a brilliant actor". Indeed he was, how else would he be able to fool everybody around him to believe he was a naturally born Alpha.

Nobody ever questioned that. Izaya was very proud of his acting skills.

But there was something he couldn't lie about, even to himself. As he came of age, something in him changed. Whenever the time came around, Izaya would feel a hard to ignore urge inside of him.

The urge to mate.

The heat had arrived.

Izaya was surprised at himself for how long he was able to hold this sadistic turn of nature off, but this was something no pheromones could cover. The first few times were horrific. He would be reduced to a shuddering mess, having to lock himself up in his apartment, away from anyone to see. He would spend days, sometimes a week or two, isolated from society, trying to control his almost unbearable urge to find a mate.

Izaya knew this was a part of his nature he could never fully control, but that didn't stop him from trying to.

It took a few cycles until he understood that he couldn't satisfy these urges himself. He would spend days and nights on his bed, sheets crumpled-up, the smell of sweat and desperation lying heavily in the air, pleasuring himself until his muscles were sore and aching. If anyone were to see, it would have been the most pathetic sight of their lives. This he was sure of.

The thought drove the heat of anger through his bones, and his desperation increased.

With years came experience, as is the way of life, and so Izaya got better at reading the signs his body gave him prior to his next heat. He found strategies to keep the worst off. Although, with none came real satisfaction, of course. But he wasn't out to find satisfaction. All he wanted was control over his life, no matter how hard it was to achieve.

Due to his connections to the black market, Izaya found his way into the dubious underground business world of Ikebukuro. It wasn't really a choice he made purposely.

It just kind of happened.

Gangs, drugs, murder. Izaya grew to be a deciding wheel in the clock that was the information market of Ikebukuro. He found something he was good at, something else to define him apart from what was, in his eyes, a tragic birth defect. He could be charming, he could be tainting. But most of all, Izaya could be dangerous. It was a trait that helped him make a lot of handy connections, next to a considerable amount of enemies.

But Izaya knew how to make himself useful, and so no one would consider him a serious threat.

Eventually, he found his way to the Awakusu group. Compared to other criminal groups their methods involved a greater finesse. Izaya enjoyed working with them. Even though there were a few names who did not simply accept him as another information broker.

They knew, Izaya was _the_ information broker.

He didn't particularly care if someone seemed to have their doubts about him. But when the executive of the Awakusu group voiced his distrust for him, Izaya felt challenged. Not in a way that he wanted to prove his loyalty to the criminal group. No, he didn't value loyalty that much, and he wouldn't be able to stick to it even if he tried. There were too many opportunities to have the people dance for him like puppets on a string, obviously he couldn't let those pass him without making use of his chances.

But, Izaya developed a certain interest for that particular group member. He promised himself, that, one day, he would show Shiki Haruya just why he shouldn't have put even the slightest bit of trust into him.

So far, that day still laid ahead of them. Izaya was in no rush. He enjoyed the man's scrutinizing looks, the way he started to act differently around Izaya, like he was an opponent to be taken seriously.

Yes, Izaya enjoyed the older man's attention.

A while ago Shiki had confronted him with a request to obtain a certain piece of information. It was by no means a difficult task. Izaya quickly found a useful source and gathered what Shiki had asked him to. But he waited with the presentation. He enjoyed the thought of having the Alpha wait patiently for him to arrive with the wanted information, like a dog waiting for its owner to come home again. Shiki was an Alpha, like most in the Awakusu group. Even the underlings of the group consisted of either Alphas or Betas. They had a very archaic view on Omegas. To most of them, Omegas were bitches to breed with.

They wouldn't be the only group to think of Omegas this way.

It filled Izaya with great glee, to have exactly these men basically do as he says, reacting according to the information he hands them. Be it true, or not.

Now, he planned on keeping Shiki on edge a little while more, for his return, but other circumstances, which he had no control over, forced him to the executive earlier. So he delivered the information, as long as it was still correct and valuable.

Because, even though Izaya was the best at what he did, it was not impossible to replace him. He was smart enough to stay aware of his own possible expiration.

That day, when he finally arrived at Shiki's door, he felt different. But just as usual, Izaya shook it off. He would soon find out that he should not have.

As he stood in front of the executive's apartment, he felt for the vaporizer with the Alpha pheromones in his coat pocket. It was a soothing weight against his fingers. Before he could get nervous about the upcoming situation, Izaya cleared his throat and put on the easiest smile he could muster up in this moment.

He lifted his hand and knocked.

It didn't take long until the door was answered. When it swung aside, he was greeted by the man himself, face in an unusually surprised frown.

"Orihara?"

"Hello Shiki! I have that information you wanted. Mind if I come in?"

Izaya managed to keep his nonchalant smile upright, staying put while the older man mustered him. He could see the respectable amount of suspicion in the executive's eyes.

Shiki seemed to turn the words over and over in his mouth. Finally, he settled with a short "Fine" and stepped aside to let the information broker come in. He did hope for this particular information to come in soon after all. But the young man obviously had a different rhythm than him, otherwise he would have showed up at a better time.

"I'm about to leave, actually," Shiki started, absently reaching for the phone on his desk.

The information broker walked into the middle of the room. There was no haste, no insecurity in his steps. He seemed completely comfortable in his place.

"Oh, don't mind me," Izaya said, while letting his eyes wander through the room.

The apartment itself seemed big enough, the right size for a man in Shiki's position. Just like the man himself was the atmosphere of his home cooled down. No personal items. No photos. No books. Nothing that could say anything about his private character.

Izaya hid his disappointment. He had hoped to find out more about the Awakusu's executive. The man held a considerable amount of distrust for him. Should the situation arise, Izaya would rather have something that he could use against Shiki.

He turned around to the older man. Shiki looked him over, his face and posture revealing his disagreement with leaving Izaya alone in his apartment.

"If you rather I'd leave…" he started, but Shiki cut him off with a wave of his hand.

"No," he said. It came out tighter than he had intended, so he rolled his shoulders to relax his posture a bit. "You can stay. Don't touch anything."

Izaya held his hands up as in defense. "I would never!"

The other man muttered something inaudible under his breath, and started to step towards the door.

"It might take a while. I should be back within a few hours. Have a seat, while you wait."

As he reached for the door handle, he paused and turned back around to the information broker.

"If one thing isn't lying in its initial place anymore, Orihara, you will have to endure the consequences."

A light shudder went through Izaya at those words. The dominant undertone sent a spark down his spine, but he quickly hid it behind a lazy hand wave.

"I respect your home, Shiki. Stay safe!"

The older man frowned, but left the situation uncommented. With a little too much force he closed the door behind himself, having Izaya flinch at the bang.

Luckily, the young man mused, he didn't see that.

Silence fell over the foreign environment. Izaya turned a few times, fully taking in the atmosphere of the apartment now that he was undisturbed. Apart from the impersonal nature of the executive's living place the second thing Izaya noticed was the heavy smell of an Alpha. While Shiki was still around, watching him closely, he had to keep his posture. It hadn't been easy. The last weeks had been incredibly busy, and so Izaya forgot about his heat cycle. When he woke up in a light sweat this morning, he cursed himself for letting something as important as his natural cycle slide. It was the one foolproof way for getting himself screwed over.

Or, as another possibility, getting screwed.

Over the years Izaya had managed to teach himself tricks to keep his urges at bay, but lately, things had taken an unfamiliar toll on him. After his uncomfortable waking up he had spent almost an hour under the shower, trying to scrub the scent of heat off his skin, and applying his illegally acquired Alpha pheromones all over himself.

When he took a last look in the mirror, he found doubt in his own face. Izaya wasn't one to doubt himself. He couldn't allow himself that much freedom. With gritty determination, he shook it off, and left for the executive's place.

Now that he was alone, Izaya could feel his determination falter. The Alpha's smell was everywhere. He took a step towards the couch, where Shiki had offered him a seat, but stopped when the smell intensified. The man seemed to have spent more time on the couch, probably for business meetings and the like.

Izaya didn't even bother heading off to the desk.

Instead, he proceeded to stand awkwardly in the middle of the room, not sure as what to do with himself. He regretted having agreed to staying at Shiki's apartment. But if he left now and the man came back, finding Izaya not at his place anymore, he might jump to false, even dangerous, conclusions. The Alpha already treated everything Izaya did with great suspicion. He could as well hand Shiki his knife and ask him to stab him in the kidney.

One way or another, it would have the same outcome.

Standing like this, he grew fidgety. That wasn't like him. Izaya was not someone to fidget or to let himself grow restless in the first place. No, he was one to control the situation completely, to manipulate it to his benefits and score the best possible outcome for himself.

Yet, there he was, having trapped himself in an inconvenient position.

Absently, Izaya opened his coat. It was unnecessarily hot in the apartment. Had it been this warm just minutes prior? He drew a hand over his face. His cheeks felt slightly warmer than usual and his heart had sped up. He groaned, scolding himself for his mistake. Not only was the scent of Shiki affecting him, it would function vice versa. If the Alpha was to come back, and he would eventually return to his own home, he would pick up the scent of an Omega. If Izaya was still around then, it would be easy for him to put two and two together.

A sudden image flashed before Izaya's eyes. The taller figure of the executive over him, pinning him down and having his way with him.

Izaya huffed.

No, he shouldn't – he couldn't! – let it come this far.

He looked around. Maybe he could take care of things as long as he was alone, and then cover up his tracks before the Alpha would return to the crime scene. Izaya felt for the vaporizer in his pocket. If he didn't want to be forced to empty the full flask he had planned for a month within a single day, he needed to act quickly. Now, at best.

He closed his eyes and let himself take in the scent of the absent Alpha. When he opened them again Izaya was sure where to fulfill his scheme.

As he opened the door to the bedroom, his knees went almost weak. He was met with the undeniable smell of sex. So, it seemed, Shiki was an active Alpha.

Izaya slowly let his coat slide down his shoulders and onto the floor. There wasn't much in the bedroom either. A bed, with a nightstand to the right side and a dresser with four drawers. His fingers twitched in curiosity, but he kept himself from looking into the drawers. The less of a connection he had to the Alpha, the better. Just earlier he had hoped to find out something about Shiki, maybe even something to pressure him with at the right time, but Izaya did not trust himself enough to handle the situation with the well needed care, if he didn't want to leave behind any traitorous traces.

So he took another step to the bed. It was a large bed, with white sheets and big, soft-looking pillows. Too big for one man to sleep alone in.

He shuddered as he leaned down on the expensive looking beddings and a whiff of Alpha scent hit his nose. Izaya knees started to tremble, so he quickly kicked off his shoes and crawled into the middle of the bed.

It was amazing. Shiki's scent was amazing.

Somewhere, in the far back of his head, a small voice told him this was a bad idea. That Shiki would find out for sure. But that voice quickly died down when Izaya leaned back and into the soft covers. He glided over the white sheets with his fingers. They were so incredibly soft, like the figural equivalent to Shiki's own cold and distanced character.

The fabric felt so good against his skin.

He needed to feel more of this. More of Shiki.

With lightly trembling fingers Izaya began to unbuckle his belt. It took him a moment to take off his pants, before he could carelessly toss them over the edge of the bed, and to the ground.

As his eyes trailed down his body, Izaya saw the light bulge forming in his briefs. This was in no way an unfamiliar sight to him. When the heat came around, he often had to resort to simple ways to relieve himself off some tension. But sometimes he had the feeling it just made things worse.

Here, surrounded by Shiki's intoxicating smell, those simple ways seemed like a very promising option to him.

Izaya laid back down in the sheets, tilting his head back and taking a deep breath through his mouth. The Alpha was all around him, and it stirred some deeply buried instincts inside of him.

One hand wandered under the waistband of his briefs and unsure fingers closed around his length. Izaya flinched, the touch seemed so much more intense than usually. Lazily, he started to stroke himself, shuddering every time he ran his thumb over the tip of his cock.

While he was busying his right hand with pleasuring himself, his left hand pushed up his dark shirt, exposing pale skin to the cool air of the bedroom.

Nervously, Izaya chewed his lips as he began to caress his chest, fingers lightly brushing over his own nipples. He gasped, and repeated the motion.

It was so easy to imagine it was someone else's hand touching him like this, what with Shiki's heavy scent engulfing him completely. He gripped his cock tighter and gasped. Yeah, it definitely felt different than usually. Izaya thought of the executive's words, that he would need at least a few hours to return to him. So, he could take his time. This chance was far too precious to waste it on a quick, unsatisfying wank. The hand that was playing with his nipples slowly crawled over his belly, past his cock and balls, and between his legs. Izaya whimpered when he felt the wetness between his ass cheeks. As an Omega, even as a male, it was normal to self-lubricate. He had always found this part to be especially embarrassing, and inconvenient. His biggest fear had often been that he might end up soaking his pants, revealing himself as an Omega to strangers.

Even now he worried he might leave a traitorous spot on Shiki's, surely expensive, beddings. But – the thought excited him.

He gasped as he slowly pushed in a finger, feeling himself twitch around the intruder. God, he felt so hot inside. With no effort he could move his finger in and out, barely feeling the glide of it against his wet hole. Izaya took a shaky breath, and pushed in a second finger.

Fuck, he was so wet.

He could feel a tug in his balls, the sign of his approaching orgasm. Quickly he let go of his cock, whining quietly. But, he did not want this to end so soon.

Instead, his right hand gently rubbed his belly. He felt every rib like this, covered by soft skin. His hand explored the perimeters of his own frame, lightly gliding over protruding hip bones and the shaved base of his cock. He shaved every second day, trying to minimize his chances of producing betraying Omega scents. Izaya was of a slim build, and this only served the soft picture of his body.

Not like anybody ever got to see this part of him.

With the next lazy thrust of his fingers, Izaya lifted his hips a bit and pushed down on them. He gasped.

This felt so fucking amazing.

His trance-like state ended abruptly when he heard a voice coming from the bedroom's doorframe.

"What are you doing?"


	2. Chapter 2

„What are you doing?"

He jolted upright, staring at Shiki standing in the doorframe.

„W-why are you back already?" he asked, voice trembling. His fingers, almost on their own, kept thrusting in and out of his wet hole.

Shiki took a step into the room, his eyes fixed to the sight of Izaya pleasuring himself on his own bed.

„The situation resolved itself," he replied, voice calm and his face unreadable.

Izaya whimpered at the sound of the Alpha's voice. His fingers slipped deeper inside, making an obscenely wet sound. Shiki took another step towards the bed.

He moved slowly, footsteps steady, like a predator approaching his wounded prey.

"You need to be mounted," he said blandly.

Izaya mewled and his legs fell open on their own. He saw a shudder going through the Alpha's body.

He wanted to say something, anything, just to clear the situation. But the voice of reason was silent. Izaya's head was filled with dough. All he wanted, all he needed, was to feel this Alpha's body on his and let his heat seep through his skin. He needed it so badly.

"P-please," he whispered, voice broken. It took him all concentration he had left to muster the next words. "Mount me, Shiki."

The older man harshly sucked the air in through his teeth. It took him all the strength he had not to jump the Omega on his bed and ravish him right then and there, without any attention to his physical wellbeing.

But this wasn't the first time Shiki had encountered an Omega this far into their heat, and it was only that experience that saved Izaya's skin.

"Turn around," the Alpha ordered. "On your hands and knees."

Izaya nodded, reluctantly pulling his fingers out of himself. But the undertone in Shiki's voice made clear that he would not ask him a second time, and so Izaya submitted willingly.

His thighs and arms were shaking. The presence of the Alpha intoxicated him, and made his already hazy mind even foggier, keeping any clear thought out. Behind him the bed dipped. Warm hands were running over his hips, carefully pulling down his soaked briefs. Izaya automatically leaned back into the touch. As if burned, the hands withdrew.

"Don't move," Shiki ordered.

The young man whimpered, but complied. He would do anything at this point, if only it meant to have the Alpha satisfy his urges.

There was a moment of silence. The small huffs and whimpers coming from Izaya's mouth seemed foreign in this quiet apartment, almost rudely intruding. The Omega did his best at following the Alpha's command, and stayed still. He felt vulnerable, exposed, having the older man sat behind him, still fully clothed, and out of his field of vision.

He imagined the view he gave the man, pale thighs lightly trembling, and his wet hole clenching around nothing, now that he couldn't pleasure himself with his own fingers anymore.

Through the heavy fog inside his mind, Izaya felt the embarrassment spreading in his gut. A sudden wave of hot shame turned his cheeks red, and he made to crawl away from the man behind him.

Long fingers closed around his thigh, just over his knee and the odd touch made Izaya jump.

He felt an apology dance on the tip of his tongue, but deep down he knew, there were no words to excuse this situation.

"Izaya," Shiki suddenly said behind him, and it was strange to hear the Alpha use his first name. "Have you been mounted before?"

The Omega hung his head, as if ashamed, and slowly shook it.

"I see. So you are untouched."

His gut turned painfully. Before his inner eye, Izaya could see the image of a knife stuck in his abdomen, and now his tormentor started to turn and twist the blade, making him suffer further.

His need for intimacy had always been overshadowed by his fear of oppression. Before the first heat had come around, Izaya hadn't wasted many thoughts on the mental construct of being with somebody. After, it became a painful idea to think about, because, for him, sharing physical intimacy meant giving up his so meticulously cared for freedom. Even at the worst times, when he would fill his bathtub with ice cubes to sit in, to be able to focus on a different pain than this bottomless urge to mate, Izaya never worried about the fact that he might stay a virgin for the rest of life, that he would never experience the satisfying touch of a stranger's hand. Compared to his chance to live freely, without that sometimes not so figural leash around his neck, it just never really mattered.

But, now that Shiki was so bluntly asking him about his chastity, Izaya felt more vulnerable than ever.

The hold on his thigh stayed. It wasn't a blunt, violent grip. It wasn't coy either. But it steadied him, him and his restless mind, and Izaya allowed it.

Then, there were fingers around his hole, slightly pulling it apart. He could feel some of his wetness trickle down his balls, something the Alpha must have noticed as well, because behind him, Shiki let out an approving flick of his tongue.

"Look at you, Izaya," he hummed, "your ass is just waiting to be filled by a good, hard cock. I can't imagine how torturous it must have been for you, to never grant yourself the fulfillment of your basic urges. How often have you laid there, by yourself, fucking that tight little hole of yours on your own fingers, and imagining it was someone else doing it? Someone bigger and stronger, to fuck you senseless, until finally, that voice in your head would shut up, just for once."

The Omega whimpered loudly, and the desperation in it was almost palpable. Shiki was teasing him, and he had every right to. After all, it was Izaya who had invaded his private home, and had tried to get off, in his bed, from his Alpha scent alone.

The weight behind him shifted, and then Shiki's mouth was right next to his ear. The low rumble of his voice sent a hot shiver down his back.

"Do you want me to be the one to fuck you senseless, Izaya? Do you want me to fuck you, right here, on my bed, and show you just what an Omega like you is good for?"

He hated himself. He hated every single word that came out of Shiki's mouth. He knew, the Alpha was only tormenting him to prove his dominance, but nonetheless, it had the desired effect. Izaya felt every single bone in his body go weak, ready to be rearranged to the liking of the Alpha, as he turned his head in the direction of the older man's presence.

With his eyes turned down, fixed on a spot somewhere between them on the covers, he muttered: "I want you to fuck me..."

"If that's the enthusiasm you're going to show while I have my dick in your ass, then never mind the offer. I have better things to do than fuck a cold fish."

His heart clenched painfully, his shame being further fueled by the humiliation he was forced to endure. Izaya knew, he was playing a losing game.

"Please," he began, and, with an effort, pried his eyes off the spot on the sheets, to look up and into the face of the Alpha. The man's eyes were filled with a cruel playfulness. It was such a stark contrast to his usual character, that Izaya almost involuntarily jerked away.

"Please," he said again, his voice nothing but a whisper. There was no more strength left he could muster up. "Fuck my bitch ass, Shiki. I want to cum on your hard cock. I want to feel it deep inside of me. Please, fuck me already."

The grip on his thigh tightened with each word, and by now Izaya was sure it would leave a bruise. He ignored the pain that spread in his leg, knowing, if he tried to struggle free now, Shiki would kick him out and leave him outside in the current state he was in, for the next best Alpha to find.

The thought instilled a dull terror in the young man.

The Alpha was visibly pleased with how easily his mate submitted to him. There was no fun in breeding a partner that wasn't willing. He looked at the young man's face, and he found soft features, typical for an Omega, but not uncommon for a Beta or an Alpha either. He never really noticed this physical trait about the information broker, mainly because he posed as a slight threat from the very beginning. Shiki would be busy keeping an eye on what the young man did, instead of studying his assets. But now he had all the time in the world to take in the Omega's appearance.

Heavy-lidded eyes, slightly rounder, pink cheeks, and soft lips, that were all red from being bitten on. He fulfilled all the criteria for a young, healthy Omega.

Izaya hadn't tried to escape his regent touch, and at this point, he wouldn't.

So, he let go of the Omega's leg – who stayed in his place, just as expected.

Deeply satisfied with himself, Shiki shifted back behind the younger man. He carefully took off his jacket, something Izaya wasn't able to see from his position, but he heard the rustling of clothes. He bit his lip in an effort to not let his excitement seep through.

He wanted to be taken by Shiki, but he was still Izaya, and so he didn't plan on granting the other man the satisfaction of witnessing his complete downfall just yet.

That was, until a long, unfamiliar finger was unceremoniously shoved into his ass. Izaya gasped and his hands dug into the beddings' soft fabric.

"Seems like this wasn't the first time you've played with your ass. I see you've already stretched yourself a good amount. Why, I wouldn't have figured you for such a slut, Izaya."

The finger was pulled out; instead, two more pushed past the rim, until Izaya could feel the Alpha's knuckles press against his skin.

"I can't wait to fuck you. You're so wet already…"

To his embarrassment, the man was right. Every time he moved his fingers, Izaya could hear the squelching sound they made, as they pushed in and out of his ass. The friction was turning him mad, it felt so amazing to have somebody else fingerfuck him. But it was by far not enough. It had Izaya deeply flustered, and he started to push back onto the protruding fingers.

Behind him, Shiki chuckled darkly. "That eager?"

Izaya was too far gone to offer him a witty comeback. All he could focus on were the Alpha's fingers inside of him. He was so into fucking himself on those fingers, that he didn't even realize when Shiki stopped moving. Now, the man simply watched the Omega pleasure himself in his own rhythm. He could tell, it was by far not enough to get Izaya off, but for now, all he wanted was to tease his mate, to bring him to the verge of despair, before he would eventually bury his cock in that sweet little hole and fuck him hard and unforgiving, just as he had promised.

It was an overall alluring scene to the Alpha. He would make sure to remember this moment well. Finding the information broker all wet and ready to be bred in his own bedroom hadn't exactly been on his to-do list for today. But Shiki had toyed with the thought of breaking the young man one way or another, should he finally prove useless to the Awakusu group.

Effectively, he had found an additional use for the little brat instead.

The voice of the Omega dragged him out of his thoughts and back to the scene.

"Please," Izaya whimpered, over and over again, in rhythm to his thrusts. Shiki could see a hint of desperate tears in the young man's eyes, as his ass kept swallowing his fingers, knowing he could take much more than that. He decided, he was done teasing the Omega.

Izaya was about to protest when he felt the fingers retrieve, but with the sound of a zipper being pulled down, the words got stuck in his throat.

Suddenly, he felt very nervous, and that small voice inside his head was back again.

Shiki noticed the tension in the Omega, and leaned down, rubbing over his lower back in small circles, comforting him.

"It's alright," he whispered. "It's going to be okay, Izaya."

Izaya nodded, eyes fluttering closed when a reassuring kiss was placed on his temple. He hung his head again, trying to brace himself, without being sure what to expect.

He suppressed a flinch, when something warm and phallic pressed against his soaked hole. Shiki placed one hand on Izaya's hip, steadying him and, with his thumb, massaged slow circles into the skin. With his other hand, he guided his cock inside that welcoming heat.

Both men moaned, and Izaya felt the vibration through the Alpha's cock inside of him. It was a strange feeling, not outright painful, but a strange pressure against his belly. He had never used any toys on himself, so the size was something he needed a moment to get used to. Shiki gave him that time, as he closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of a tight, hot body around his dick.

It had been a while since his last shag, as the past weeks hadn't allowed any real moments of privacy. Someone was always around. So Shiki planned on making this, incredibly welcomed opportunity, last a while.

Beneath him, Izaya started to wiggle. Youth still had no patience, it seemed.

He lifted his head, back slightly arched, as he tried to look at the other man. But Shiki made no efforts of meeting him, instead he placed his other hand on Izaya's hip now.

Without any forewarning, he pulled out almost completely and slammed right back in.

Izaya cried out, feeling the sudden thrust as a sharp strike throughout his back. He bit his lip in an attempt to keep the rising whimper at bay. It was a painful reminder that he was still dealing with a dominant Alpha, and right now Izaya was nothing more but a willing Omega at his hands' mercy. But he wouldn't cave in that easily. Defiantly, he pressed back against the other man.

"Oh, you're one of those?" Shiki said lowly. "A little headstrong, are we?"

Izaya huffed, but left the dig at his personality uncommented.

"Fine. If that's how you want to play this game. Don't cry about it later, though."

He barely had any time to brace himself for the next sharp thrust, and so it finally pushed that held-back whimper over his lips. Shiki chuckled, seemingly satisfied with himself.

He repeated the motion a few times, drawing his cock out almost completely, only to shove it back in, in an unforgiving manner, until he felt his hips press against Izaya's ass. The skin there began to redden from the ongoing slaps, and Shiki dragged a thumb over his work approvingly. When the Omega kept pushing back against him, still unwilling to submit completely, Shiki felt his temper being strained.

He grabbed the young man with both hands around his middle, digging his nails in until Izaya let out a pained hiss. Then he snapped his hips forward, while pulling the slim body back against him, burying his cock deeper inside of Izaya's ass. He kept repeating the motion, ignoring the sounds of discomfort the Omega made, until he felt the muscles under his fingers relax.

Finally, Izaya had surrendered to the Alpha, and now he simply let himself be fucked by Shiki's hard cock.

A rush of power chased through his system, as the executive let his hands glide lower again, digging his fingers into that slight hollow next to the Omega's hipbones. With a secure grip like this, he could easily control Izaya's movement. He slowed down again, working with shorter thrusts now, just bathing in the feeling of skin slapping on skin, the young man's wetness; some of it covering the pubic hair right around the base of his cock, and his dick gliding along soft inner walls.

The air was filled with small moans, and the sticky sound of two bodies moving inside each other.

Putting his weight on shaky legs, Izaya lifted one arm to reach behind him; reach for Shiki's hands still holding on to his hips. He eventually found the man's fingers and tried to intertwine his own with them. The other man allowed him the comforting touch, as he watched him closely.

"Shiki," Izaya muttered. He sounded slightly breathless, like the process was taking a serious toll on him. "Please, I need it harder."

At those words, Shiki's hips snapped sharply forward, forcing Izaya to let go of his hand to prevent himself from falling over.

"You want me to fuck you harder?" Shiki hissed between gritted teeth. "You want to feel this in the morning?"

Izaya, unable to form a coherent word anymore, nodded quickly. His eyes closed, mouth hung open, when Shiki accepted his request, thrusts coming harsher now, enhancing the sound of their flesh slapping together.

"Your cock feels amazing," he managed to form between moans. "Fuck, it feels so hot inside of me-"

He was cut off by the next hard thrust. Izaya gasped, as small dots of light exploded before his eyes and blurred his vision. Everything felt so fucking intense, the feeling of Shiki's cock, dragging along his walls, as more and more of his wetness trickled down his balls and thighs. Any thought of composure was long gone. He let himself get carried away by the feeling of having someone else press against him, use his body as much to satisfy their urges as to satisfy his. Over him, Shiki muttered, and strong hands roughly dragged along the skin of his sides. Blunt nails dug into the pale flesh, pulling a whimper from the smaller male.

Shiki leaned forward. He wanted to be able to take in that Omega's delicious smell, wanted to be able to remember it for the next time he saw the information broker, and remind them both of this lewd scene that was taking place right now.

It was as if his blood was on fire, pumping the warm liquid through his veins, spurring him on as Shiki felt a familiar rush of power overtake him. His conscious mind grew unsteady. Instead, his primal urges started to take control of him. As an Alpha, he didn't just want to satisfy his lust with this Omega – he wanted to _own_ him.

Shiki's hands moved up Izaya's sides, until he was lightly scratching the soft skin of the young man's chest. He felt the Omega shudder, as he dragged his nails across Izaya's nipples. With his teeth, he playfully bit into the smaller male's ear, earning a light gasp from him.

"You want to carry my litter, Izaya?" he murmured into the Omega's ear. "You want to carry my pups in your belly?"

Izaya whimpered, nodding his head quickly at those words. Shiki growled, grabbing a fistful of the young man's hair and roughly yanked his head back, until his neck was completely exposed.

"Say it," he hissed, his cock steadily drawing in and out of Izaya's wet hole. "Say you want my litter."

The Omega mewled. His mind was fogged by lust, each thrust by Shiki sending a hot wave of pleasure down his spine. His usual arrogance and pride stayed quiet.

"I want your litter," he whimpered, "I want it deep inside of me."

A shudder went through Shiki at those words and he finally released his tight grip on the other man's hair. Instead, he leaned forward, nuzzling his nose against the Omega's neck, feeling the heat radiating off him. He smelled the young man's lust, felt his rabid pulse against his lips.

He opened his mouth and buried his teeth in the soft flesh.

Izaya cried out, his instincts to fight the attack off and to submit to his Alpha struggling for prevalence. But then Shiki released his neck and gently licked at the sore spot. The young man sighed, and let his head loll to the side, exposing more of his vulnerable throat.

His Alpha would not hurt him, that he was sure of.

The next bite didn't surprise him as much. He welcomed the pain that went through his body like a spark. His Alpha was marking him, leaving a sign of possession to any other Alpha who tried to take his bitch. He carefully licked the marks of his last bite, tasting the faintest hint of blood. It was enough to spur him on. Shiki leaned further forward, forcing Izaya to press his face and chest against the soft bedding. He wrapped an arm around the smaller man's middle to steady himself, and drove his cock deeper into the welcoming heat of the Omega's ass.

Izaya moaned, trying his best to push back against Shiki, but he held him in a tight grip. He was completely at the older man's mercy and had no other choice but to take the increasingly harder thrusts. His body was aching, thighs shaking under the Alpha's weight, trying to keep steady while he took his fat cock. He could feel Shiki's grip on his sides, how his nails dug into the flesh. It would surely leave bruises. Izaya sighed at the thought of being able to feel remnants of their mating in the morning. It sent another sharp spark of lust down his spine.

"Breed me," he whispered, words slightly muffled by the mattress. "Breed me, breed me, breed me…"

On top of him, Shiki growled and it came from the depth of his chest. Izaya felt the vibration against his skin and instinctively turned his head, completely surrendering his vulnerable neck to the Alpha. Shiki could easily hold him down with his teeth and do with him as he pleased, or even kill him. The thought excited Izaya and his hands gripped the sheets between them so tightly his knuckles turned white.

Over him, the older male drove his hips forward, pushing as deep as he could into the young Omega's tempting heat. His mind was overruled by the most basic instinct. To breed his partner, to bury his sperm deep into that welcoming virgin hole and watch his tummy swell with their litter.

Shiki could feel a familiar tug in his balls. Soon he would release into Izaya.

With his free hand he reached around the Omega's body. Izaya whimpered when all of the Alpha's weight was leaning down on him. His back arched painfully. The new angle had Shiki's cock thrust even deeper into him, driving his head mercilessly against the young man's prostate. Izaya cried out. He almost didn't feel the Alpha's teeth graze his skin yet again, as a hand wrapped around his own swollen and dripping cock.

One squeeze and he was gone.

The orgasm hit him hard, his body going stiff as wave after wave of pleasure overruled the Omega's body. He had never felt something like this before. Izaya's mouth hung open, but no sound escaped.

Soundlessly, Shiki spilled his seed inside of him. The young man shuddered at the feeling of the hot seed covering his walls. It was almost too much to take.

When his orgasm subsided, but the older man kept thrusting into him, Izaya whimpered. He felt pinpricks in the corner of his eyes. He kept them closed. Although overstimulated, he wanted to be swallowed by the feeling of his Alpha inside of him. Warm lips pressed against his temple. Immediately, Izaya's body relaxed. His thighs were trembling so badly, if it wasn't for Shiki's arm still wrapped around his middle he would have collapsed right there.

Finally, the fog inside his head started to clear out, and he was able to hear the words of endearment the Alpha whispered into his ear.

"That's good, you're doing so well, Izaya," he murmured, his warm breath ghosting over the heated skin of the body beneath him.

Izaya sighed contentedly. Carefully, Shiki turned them both on their sides, his cock still lodged inside of the young man's ass. His instinct told him to keep the seed inside of his Omega, and so they lay there, Shiki lazily grinding against his mate.

He could have stayed like this forever, but eventually, the feeling of Izaya around his cock became too uncomfortable, and so he slowly, very carefully, pulled out. The young man muttered incoherently at the loss. Shiki watched his semen almost immediately slip out of the abused hole. With two fingers he pushed it back inside.

"Shiki," Izaya started, shuddering against the Alpha's touch. He was hushed by the other man, and so, although uncomfortable, he allowed his used hole to be stretched again.

All the while the Alpha placed warm kisses all over Izaya's face, mumbling words of encouragement.

It was well after they finished, and behind the curtains the sun had already vanished to make rightful place to the stars, that Shiki seemed satisfied with his work and as gently as possible removed his fingers from the young man's ass. He withstood the urge to wipe them on his expensive beddings, and instead got up to find a wet cloth. Izaya was already dozing away on the bed, and let his legs be pulled apart by the other man. He mumbled quietly as Shiki was cleaning him, but accepted the makeshift grooming.

He must have fallen asleep, as the next time he woke, the room was completely dark. Izaya blinked into the blackness. The familiar fabric of his shirt on his skin was gone, instead satin sheets covered his slim frame. He instinctively held his breath when an arm tightened around his side. Slowly, the sleep's drunk haze cleared from his mind and Izaya remembered what had happened the prior hours.

As if to confirm his still foggy memories, Shiki behind him sighed, drawing the Omega's small body closer to his.

Izaya swallowed.

"Goddamn."


	3. Chapter 3

His mind was spinning. Piece by piece, the memories of the previous night came back to him, fragile, like a card house. But he started to paint a picture in front of his inner eye.

He had been – in fact, he still was – with Shiki. The man still had his heavy arm wrapped around Izaya's sore middle. When he tried to move, his muscles protested. With a defeated huff, Izaya sunk back into the comforting pillows. It felt strange to have another body pressed up against him. The Awakusu executive breathed steadily in his sleep, his heart thudding inside of his chest in a calm rhythm. The young man held his breath, so he could listen better to the small sound. His head was leaning against Shiki's chest, the taller man was curved around him from head to toe.

Izaya carefully turned his head around. The sight of the man's sleeping face was so unfamiliar to him, he almost felt intrusive studying the usually so taught features.

The arm around his side twitched, and the young man flinched involuntarily. He held his breath when Shiki let out a small groan. Then, his eyelids fluttered open. Izaya watched his dilated pupils shrink when he focused on the Omega staring at him.

Shiki yawned, tugging his arm away from Izaya's body to drag a hand over his face.

"Morning," he mumbled.

The young man watched him closely. The nonchalance in the Alpha's voice didn't reassure him at all. On the other hand, what had he expected? Differently than him, Shiki had been well in control when he discovered the Omega in his bedroom. His senses hadn't been clouded by a suspended heat. The moment he decided to mount Izaya in his own bed, Shiki had been in full possession of all his senses.

An unfair advantage compared to his own state, Izaya thought bitterly.

But what now? The older man made no efforts of any next step, he just laid there next to his guest, hand still shielding his eyes from some nonexistent light. Izaya realized he was occupying his other arm when something under his neck tried to tug free. He moved to sit up, clutching the sheets between his fingers to cover his bare chest. With a look Izaya realized how young he really looked compared to Shiki. The Alpha's chest was covered by a light shadow of dark hair, reaching down to his navel and beyond, but his hips were still covered by the soft beddings. The man wasn't exactly build like a powerhouse, but beneath the pale skin fine muscles defined his frame. His shoulders were decorated with colorful tattoos, typical for the yakuza. Izaya was able to make out cherry blossoms, a dragon's tail, starting on his left shoulder, seemingly wrapping around his back and ending in a typical grimace at the jolt of his right shoulder. They could easily be covered throughout the day, when Shiki slipped into his typical dark shirt and white suit jacket. But now his skin lay naked and free to his sight before Izaya.

He swallowed. It felt strange, weirdly intimate, to study the executive's body decoration. The man even still wore his golden chain. The same he wears every single day, on every occasion that Izaya had met up with the business man. It was as much a part of him as his short, usually tousled hair, the scar on his left temple and the mocking glimmer in his eyes when someone, who was obviously below his rank, tried to pressure him into an unfair deal.

Izaya looked down his own body, slowly letting the covers sink. His chest was bare, not even the lightest hint of hair. His own shoulders were bony, leading to pronounced clavicles and a long, fine neck. His stomach was flat and when he drew a hand over his sides, Izaya could feel every single rib underneath the spotless skin. But now they were covered in faint bruises, just a shy violet against the rest of his light complex, but still visible, even in the dimly lit bedroom.

They didn't hurt when he brushed over them, the Alpha's grip having been far from violent when he took him. Just a reminder to the eye.

"How do you feel?"

Izaya turned his attention back to the naked man next to him. Right, naked, both in each other's personal space, like it was the most normal thing in the world. Shiki watched him through spread fingers, the hand still on his face. His eyes studied the Omega's face, searching for any hints of discomfort. Instead, he found uncertainty.

Izaya swallowed again. His throat felt incredibly dry, and when he finally managed to form a coherent sentence, his voice was all raspy.

"I would like a glass of water," he muttered, the first best thing that came to his mind. Right after the words were out, Izaya felt incredibly stupid for the inappropriate answer.

But Shiki just nodded and finally made to stand up. The young man quickly looked away when the Alpha threw back the covers, exposing the rest of his naked form. He walked out of the room, not bothering to put on anything to cover himself. Well, it was Shiki's own apartment after all, Izaya remembered. There was no need for him to feel ashamed, this was his home.

The thing that wasn't supposed to be there, that wasn't fitting into the rest of the quiet environment, was Izaya himself.

He patiently waited for the older man to return, in his hand a glass of cold water.

"Here," Shiki said, handing it to the visibly taut guest in his bed. "Watch that you drink enough today. You lost quite the amount of fluids yesterday."

Izaya coughed, the few droplets of water having been caught in his windpipe at those words. He quickly took another sip, to cover up the coughing fit that was about to start. Shiki seemed to have taken no notice of his struggle, as he made to sit back down next to him again. Izaya carefully moved a bit to the side, creating some more distance between their bodies. Even though he had been craving the man's closeness just hours prior, his heat had subsided considerably, and now it felt awkward to be so close to the executive.

After all, he barely knew anything about the man; and now he was seated in his bed, his clothes nowhere in sight.

"Feeling better?"

Izaya nodded. He lowered the glass, having it almost completely emptied in the few minutes that they sat together in silence.

"I…," he started, not sure of what to say. He fell silent again, his thumb dragging over the perspiring surface of the glass in his hands. "Well, this is strange."

Shiki had his side turned to him, but at the sound of his unsure words, he shifted so he could face Izaya.

"Is it?"

The young man looked at him, visibly perplexed at his relaxed tone. "Yes, of course it is. This isn't what I had planned when I came yesterday. I mean, when I came _to you_ yesterday. Not came as in… ah, I did come, but…-"

He gnawed on his lips. Shiki watched him stutter out senseless word after word, not making the impression as if he wanted to help him out.

"You know what I mean," Izaya finished sheepishly. He stared at the cold object in his hands. This wasn't like him, to be sheepish, to trip over his own words. On the other hand, this wasn't a familiar situation. Izaya didn't know much about the etiquettes of one-night stands. Shiki, on the opposite, seemed to have a wider spectrum of experiences in this field. He seemed perfectly comfortable with the situation.

After a minute of silence, he nodded and made to stand up.

"I am going to take a shower now. Do you want to join me?"

Izaya's head jerked upwards.

"What?"

Shiki frowned. Quickly, Izaya corrected his question. "No, thank you. I will stay here, and wait for you to finish."

The Alpha nodded. "Are you worried I might reveal your secret, Izaya?"

So far, this thought hadn't even occurred to him. He looked up at the Awakusu executive, tried to read in the still relaxed features of his face. But he came up with nothing.

"Yes," he replied quietly. "I think I am worried of that."

Shiki shook his head. "No, that's nothing to worry about. Your secret is safe with me. Really, it would be to both of our disadvantage if I told my business partners you were an Omega. I would lose a good informant, and you… well, maybe we shouldn't delve deeper into that idea. But we will have to talk about the future of our business relationship. That is something I can't slip past. I'm sure you understand, Izaya."

It still sounded strange to his ears to hear Shiki use his first name. So casually, as if he had never done anything else. Even when it was about their business, Shiki managed to let his name slip in as if it was an important part of their conversation. Izaya felt a slight flutter in his chest.

"Of course," he mumbled.

With that, Shiki turned to leave the bedroom and vanish out of Izaya's sight. He was left alone in the large room, still partly cast into shadows, the only light coming from the opened door to the rest of the apartment.

Izaya sighed. That was quite the mess he had gotten himself into.

 **oOoOo**

He inspected the marks on his neck in the mirror. With a finger, he traced the outlines of an especially prominent one. There were visible impressions of teeth, the skin around them having turned a hard to oversee purple. He winced when the mark stung at the slightest touch. No chance he could cover this up with makeup. Sometimes, after he had been in a brawl with Shizuo, Izaya needed to put on some foundation to look fresh for a business meeting. Nobody wanted to make contracts with an informant that looked like he might faint on the spot. He always wore the bruises the brute gave him with pride, even if nobody else knew of them; like a dirty little secret. To Izaya, they meant he had outsmarted his best fiend yet again.

These marks, on the other hand, spoke a different kind of language.

„You didn't have to be so rough, you know," he said, as Shiki entered the room. His hair was still damp from the shower, but at least he had put on some pants now.

„Hmm, strange," the older man mused, „last night, you seemed very fond of the treatment."

Izaya turned his eyes away from the bruised skin, to shoot Shiki a glare. Usually, this look might have cost him dear, but instead, the Alpha seemed amused.

„If you don't want people to see the marks then put on a scarf. Isn't that what kids do to hide their lovebites?"

The patronizing words left a tainted taste on his tongue, but Izaya kept quiet. Shiki had promised not to spill his secret to anyone, and for that he was grateful. But, it seemed, he forfeited some of the respect the executive had left for him.

A bitter pill. Nonetheless, Izaya was ready to swallow it.

„I don't even own a scarf," he simply muttered.

„Take one of mine."

The Omega lifted his eyebrows, genuinely surprised at the offer. „Why would you?"

Shiki stepped next to him. His bare skin was still heated up from the shower, and Izaya resisted the urge to draw his fingertips across the man's chest. Instead, he stepped aside, as Shiki reached to open a drawer.

„I feel responsible," he said. „It might be the case, that you came to my apartment, at the peak of your heat and felt it a good idea to relieve yourself in my bed, but…"

The older man rummaged through the drawer, until he pulled out a long black scarf. He turned to Izaya, who watched him closely. For a moment, Shiki fell quiet, holding the soft material between his fingers.

„I could have said no. I could have walked away and let you be. Instead, we both let our nature get the better of us. Like I said, you aren't the first Omega I have mounted, so I know better than to hold this against you."

Again, the Alpha fell silent, seemingly musing over his next words.

„Besides, you are my information broker. I respect the way you handle my requests. Telling your secret to my business partners would only mean to cut my own flesh. A loss-loss situation, for both of us."

Izaya had listened to the executive silently. Now, he managed a lopsided grin.

„And here I was, thinking you might go emotional on me, Shiki," he huffed. „But you are still all business, as usual."

„Is this not the kind of relationship you are seeking, Mr. Orihara?"

Izaya reached out and took the scarf from the Alpha's offering hands.

"No, this is the only kind of relationship I am seeking," he mumbled. They looked at each other for a moment, a quiet understanding developing between them.

"Well," Shiki started, "you should shower before you leave the house. The scent of our mating is all over you, and if you don't want to attract the next mate right away, you should clean yourself. You know how to handle your heat, right?"

At this question, Shiki lifted an eyebrow, watching Izaya closely. The young man huffed, feeling the tiniest bit belittled by the Alpha.

"Of course I do," he replied.

Shiki nodded, seemingly convinced by Izaya's tone. "Good. Now, go take that shower. When you are done, we have to talk about that information you obtained for me."

Over all the nightly action Izaya had completely forgotten about the actual reason he had come to visit the executive. He carefully slipped past the man, looking for his clothes on the way out.

"Where…," he started. Shiki opened another drawer, presenting him the neatly folded clothes he had so unlovingly shed the past night. The man really had a strange need for tidiness.

"You shouldn't put these on today. I will have them washed and given back to you soon enough. For now, take some of my clothes."

"Won't anyone notice?" Izaya asked, doubt swinging in his voice.

The other man looked at him with the same kind of doubt. "And the smell of your heat is less suspicious?"

He had an undeniable point there. Izaya weighed his head lightly from one side to the other. "Alright," he eventually agreed. "Your idea is probably better. I will clean your clothes and give them back to you, once I made it to my home."

But Shiki waved the offer off. "No need for that," he mused, a small smile curling at his lips. "I don't mind your smell, Izaya."

The young man felt a familiar heat rise into his cheeks, and he quickly made to grab the clothes Shiki was holding out for him and head into the general direction of the bathroom.

Just like the rest of the apartment, the room was bathed in white. White tiles, white walls and an overall modern feeling. Izaya stood in the middle of the luxurious room for a moment, taking in the vibes. Then he headed for the shower. It was still warm from Shiki's previous use, damp air greeting him when he opened the glass door. It felt strange to use someone else's shower, especially after a night like theirs. But the Alpha had a point when he said that it might be too risky to go out like this, with the smell of their mating clinging stubbornly to his skin.

Izaya turned a few silver knobs and ice cold water splashed down on him. He yelped, and quickly turned another knob. Finally, he felt warm water run over his frame, but his body was already shivering from the previous treatment. At least it had woken him up properly now.

It was then, as he lifted his head to hold his face into the warm stream, that his brain caught up with the situation.

He was standing in Shiki Haruya's shower, naked, after having spent the night with him. Rather spontaneously, and not exactly planned into his schedule, at that. It was the first time he had ever spent a night with someone. A lot of people make a fuss about their first time, but Izaya just never had really put any thought into it, as it had always been far out of his realm of possibilities, due to his freedom's sake. He just never had the chance to get nervous about it in the first place.

And now it had happened. Just like that.

He reached for the bottle of shower gel to his left, pouring a generous amount of the blueish liquid into his hand. It smelled just like Shiki. At the thought of smelling just like the Alpha, his chest fluttered again, but Izaya stubbornly blamed it on his empty stomach. He wouldn't allow himself any sappy ideas now. This was neither the place, nor the time. To be correct, it never was, and it never should be. Izaya decided to treat the situation with the needed professionalism. After all, it just needed one foot wrong, and he might put his neck on the line.

Hastily, he spread the liquid in his hands and over his body, making sure to wash himself properly. After he rinsed the first layer off, he repeated the process. Just to be safe. When he bent to clean his thighs, Izaya felt a slight ache in his lower body. While under the shower, he discovered more marks and more bruises. None of them were especially large, they didn't even sting when Izaya let his fingers dance over them. But he knew they were there.

Shiki knew it, too.

He quickly shook that thought off, and proceeded to wash the skin between his thighs. He felt a slight paranoia creep up his spine. Luckily, Shiki was just as endorsing his secret as he was. If the Alpha had decided to turn on him, to tell his situation to his business partners or to personally benefit from Izaya's unlucky state… well, Izaya would have been royally screwed.

He finished the shower by rinsing his hair with the expensive looking shampoo next to the shower gel. Although he had cleaned himself thoroughly, Izaya had deliberately shied away from cleaning his nether regions. It had felt wrong to touch himself under the man's shower, even if it was only to clean himself. Never before had he been reluctant to touch his body, any part of his body. But the latest events had shed a new light on his own physical awareness.

Another crack in his usually so strictly composed behavior.

After he left the shower, Izaya took his time to dry his skin off. He hated the feeling of clothes clinging to his damp skin. At his own home, he would walk around stark naked for some minutes, just to make sure he was dried off completely before putting on his simple outfit. But he didn't exactly have the luxury of doing that now, or maybe he did – in the back of his head, Izaya was convinced Shiki wouldn't mind – but he felt a resolute resistance against the idea.

He unfolded the pieces of clothes, the scent of the Alpha hitting his nose promptly as he did. Izaya looked the shirt over he was holding in his hands. It was a simple black t-shirt, the neck having a round cut. Izaya crunched up his nose. At least their taste in clothing was somewhat similar. He quickly slipped into the shirt. It went all the way to the middle of his thighs, making him aware of his somewhat too small build. Izaya had always been a bit small for his age, something he blamed on his nature, and there had always been enough people to remind him of this fact. He wasn't _too_ small, but he wasn't tall either. Unlike his dear Shizuo, for example. The man overtowers him by almost a head. His high school friend Shinra, on the other hand, was about the same height as him. Shinra wasn't an Alpha either, but a Beta and that came pretty close to the physical state of an Alpha already.

The physical differences between male Alphas and Omegas were more prominent than the differences between female ones. Often, people wouldn't be able to tell by their appearances alone. But female Alphas displayed a very different behavior than their Omegas. Izaya was always able to tell the Alphas from the Omegas, and even realize if somebody was a Beta who just displayed Alpha behavior. Reading people's body language had been a vital key to his survival.

Still lost in his thoughts, he slipped into the too wide slacks. Even buttoning them up didn't keep them from slipping over his hips again, and so Izaya was forced to hold them up himself. Shuffling his way out of the bathroom and into the hall, he ran into Shiki. At last, a completely dressed Shiki.

"I was just about to knock," he said, looking down on the young man, clad in his own clothes. "You should eat something before we begin the business."

"How thoughtful," Izaya scorned bitterly. "Although, I wish you had thought of a belt to give me."

To emphasize his words, he let go of the slacks, which immediately slipped down to the height of his hip bones. The Alpha mustered him, and chuckled.

"You can have a belt, no worries."

He waited for the man to return with the desired object, quickly pulling the leather belt through the slacks' loops and pulling it as tight as possible. The pants still sat very loosely on his hips, but at least now they somewhat stayed in place. Just as he was done securing the clothes around his frame, Izaya heard his stomach make an audible rumble. He clutches his belly, as if he could hold in the sound this way. He really was hungry. Usually, Izaya didn't consume any breakfast. Whenever he woke up he never felt any hunger, it came throughout the day and then he would satisfy his needs at Russian Sushi. But now, it felt as if he was carrying the void itself around – and it demanded to be filled.

He followed the smell of tea into the small kitchen.

Shiki turned his head when he approached him.

"Tea? Or coffee?"

"Tea, thank you," Izaya replied politely and sat down on a stool next to the kitchen counter. He watched the older man arrange a few things. Despite his rank and privileges, Shiki was a man who could take care of himself. When he was asked if he wanted sugar, Izaya shook his head. "I don't like sweet stuff."

"That's strange," Shiki commented. "People your age usually are all over sugary sweets."

"I guess I'm a bit different," he mumbled, catching the glimpse of a smile pulling at the corners of the Alpha's lips.

Shiki placed two plates with fresh rice and an omelette on the kitchen table, gesturing Izaya to have a seat. As he sat down, an umeboshi was placed on a smaller plate next to the rice.

"You'll need this today," Shiki explained, as he caught the Omega's questioning look. "You may not feel it yet, but the last night asked a lot of your body. Especially since it was your first time. But you said you know how to handle yourself, right?"

He sat down across from the younger man, mustering him with a testing look.

Izaya kept himself from snorting at the remark. Yes, he knew his body very well.

"Don't worry about me," he said, reaching for the pickled fruit. "I'll be fine today."

Later on in the day, Izaya would regret his cockiness. But for now, he felt fine and enjoyed the first proper breakfast he had in what must have been years.

 **oOoOo**

They didn't talk much during breakfast, and even when they sat down to discuss the information Izaya had obtained for the yakuza, the conversation felt strangely idle. Usually, he would present his work in a more enthusiastic manner, but now, the words wouldn't come as easily over his lips. Izaya kept letting his gaze slip past the man in front of him, staring into nothing as he talked about the finished job. Shiki asked a question here and there, but besides that, he simply listened to the Omega and took in the information.

It was quite the important piece, about a rivalling gang that tried to get a hand in the Awakusu's business of trading rare animals. As this topic directly influenced Shiki's part of the group's business, he had insisted on commissioning Izaya with the job. As usual, the young informant had not failed to deliver.

Shiki was a man of honor, and Izaya trusted him to not mix their – involuntarily deepened – personal relationship with business. But he felt the man's looks on him, not in the usual scrutinizing way, and that was what weirded him out. The distrust Shiki had had for him seemed to have paled since the past night. It made Izaya somewhat anxious, and he resisted the urge of biting his lip in a nervous gesture.

When he couldn't take the tension anymore, Izaya paused.

"I must ask you something," he started. He pushed aside the folder containing the delicate information about the Awakusu's rival group, moving away the barrier he had so far between the other man and himself. "Will this, I mean, my _situation_ , have an impact on our future relationship? I must ask, because, after all, it's my neck on the line. Quite literally."

Shiki leaned back in his spot on the couch, head supported by his arm resting on the armpiece.

"Does this feel any different than usual to you?"

"Well, yes. It doesn't feel different to you?"

He was met with the slightest frown. "I just have a different relation to my own nature, and thus to yours. The scene we played this morning isn't uncommon to me. But it obviously is to you. From my side, everything is the same, as much as it can be. You don't have to worry about any bold moves I might make, and your secret is safe with me. I give you my word as your business partner, because that's all we are. Is that not alright with you?"

Izaya pressed his lips together. He felt foolish for having questioned the Alpha's integrity of the situation.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled. He bowed his head, arranging the papers in his lap as if they had been in disarray. "I didn't mean to question you. This is alright with me, and I thank you for your discretion."

The Alpha left the excuse uncommented, just nodded his head lightly. His features had returned to their usual tautness and Izaya regretted his unthoughtful move.

 **oOoOo**

It was nearing noon when Izaya finally left the executive's apartment. His coat was just as stained as the rest of his clothes, and so he received a black jacket to put over his slim frame. Just like the other pieces, it was too large for his frame. The only thing that didn't look completely out of place on him was the dark scarf, loosely wrapped around his neck to hide the marks. Izaya felt ridiculous.

The goodbye had been of its usual professional nature. None of them mentioned the nightly incident anymore, and even though Shiki had promised him to stay discrete about the matter, even though Izaya did believe him, it felt strange. Almost too easy.

All these years of adjusting, of hiding, trying to be someone he wasn't and could never be, just so his freedom remained untouched – and this was supposed to be it? Maybe he was just lucky with his companion. Izaya was sure, any other man of the Awakusu group would have used his nature against him. Well, maybe not Akabayashi. Just like Shiki, honor meant a lot to the man. He had a vengeful aura around himself, but the times Izaya got to meet and talk to him, the so-called "Red Devil" had been nothing but a gentleman.

But would he still be as calm and charming when he knew how their informant had tricked them? Izaya had heard tales of how the man could turn from zero to hundred in the blink of an eye, leaving painful marks of his cane on his opponent's body. He had never witnessed a scene like this himself, but Akabayashi wasn't the man who needed false rumors to be spread about him to keep that aura of power around him upright.

As he made his steps down the stairs and onto the already busy streets of Ikebukuro, Izaya mused over his situation. Out of the secure atmosphere of Shiki's apartment, he was forced to deal with the doubt gnawing at his consciousness by himself. He needed to think about his next step. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, so it said. Izaya didn't plan on letting himself glide into the next uncontrollable situation any time soon. He made his way home, ignoring the strange looks people gave him for his awkward outfit. If he was honest, it felt good to feel the Alpha's clothes on his skin. Every time he breathed in, he could smell the man's odor. It was as if Shiki still had him in the same embrace as in the morning.

It comforted him, and Izaya couldn't keep himself from allowing it.

Back home, he reluctantly changed out of the clothes, to exchange them for pieces of his own clothing. A familiar smell, his smell, but mixed with the illegally acquired Alpha pheromones. When he was done changing, Izaya took Shiki's shirt in his hand. It smelled strongest of the man and he pressed the still warm fabric to his face, breathing in deeply the prominent scent of the Alpha. Something deep inside of him sighed in relief. He stood like this for a few moments, isolated pictures of the past night dancing before his eyes.

Now, in the private corners of his home, Izaya was finally able to acknowledge the reality of what had happened between him and the Awakusu's executive. He bathed in the memory of strong hands grabbing his hips and pulling him back against the toned body of the Alpha. He shuddered, when he remembered the wicked words Shiki had whispered into his ear, while driving his cock deeper into him.

Izaya knew, he wouldn't be able to keep those memories at bay forever, and so he allowed them to flood him for a brief moment.

He sighed, and eventually put down the shirt, folding it and placing it on top of the rest of Shiki's clothes.

At least his heat had been satisfied, it seemed. That was a great benefit.

He didn't have much time to muse over his situation. Shiki now wanted him to observe the rival group as closely as possible, so they could strike at the right moment and dispose of their opponents in the near future. Izaya put on a short-sleeved hoodie that didn't match the man's scarf at all, grabbed a phone from his desk and made to leave, mind still occupied by the latest incidents.

And so, he forgot about the vaporizer, still comfortably seated inside of his coat's pocket at Shiki's apartment.

 **oOoOo**

He frowned, as Akabayashi leaned closer to him, very much so feeling his personal space unrightfully invaded.

"What are you doing there?" Shiki asked, trying to keep the discomfort out of his voice. "Are you… smelling me?"

Akabayashi sniffed as to confirm his theory. "Forgive me, Haruya," he said, pulling away with an apologetic smile. "It's just, you smell different today. Not really like yourself."

Slowly, the smile turned into a cheeky grin. "Did you spend the night alone yesterday?"

Shiki frowned, but kept his cool exterior.

"That's none of your business, Mizuki."

"Hm, I do wonder, who it could be… Oh, did you finally get around to talk to that bar lady? She seemed very interested in you last time."

He felt a familiar throb in his temple. Slightly, Shiki gritted his teeth.

"Why do you have to be so obnoxious today?"

"Ah, I'm sorry, Haruya! Don't be mad with me, please. It's just that I'm interested in hearing about you. I'm curious!"

"Are you now? Ever heard of 'curiosity killed the cat'?"

Akabayashi chuckled, but took the hint. For a minute they sat in silence, while the car drove along the busy road.

"So it wasn't good?"

"Will you knock it off?" Shiki blustered, his composure eventually cracked by his business partner's inquiry. He clenched his fist, trying to resist the urge to punish the other man for his unruly behavior. But a scuffle in such a close quarter would just end up hurting them both the same.

He leaned back with a huff, staring out of the window.

"It wasn't bad," he eventually muttered.

Next to him, Akabayashi quietly laughed. "I am glad to hear that. I would be surprised if it had been! You know, you look much better today, in fact, you almost glow…"

"Don't push it, Mizuki."

 **oOoOo**

His throat felt a bit dry, but Izaya tried his best to ignore it as he was standing outside of the rivalling gang's headquarters. They were a new group, freshly formed so to speak, so a lot of people talked about them. It hadn't taken Izaya long to figure out where they had their hideout. More or less a hideout, actually. It was an old warehouse that had been standing empty since some years now. Izaya mustered the broken windows and metallic skeleton scarred by time and a missing hand to take care of it. The front was opening to a wide hall, like a beast's mouth, torn open, to swallow anything and everything that dared to step too close.

Izaya leaned his head to the side. The plan was to infiltrate the gang, offer himself as their new informant and gain their trust by completing simple jobs for them. Izaya knew by experience that young gangs were much easier to convince of his loyalty than pre-existing groups that had prevailed many times already, like the Awakusu group. It had taken him quite some efforts, a lot of sweat and short nights, together with a good amount of his high school years to gain their trust. It was because of that reason that Izaya still felt his gut turn ominously at the thought of Shiki now being involved in his personal scheme, of hiding his nature from the yakuza. It was a surely risky business, and still the executive had seemed so… nonchalant about it.

Now wasn't the time to worry about his personal problems though, and so Izaya brushed it off and walked towards the wide hall opening in front of him.

As expected, he was greeted with surprised shouting and threatening gestures, as if the owners of this parody of a hideout had actually thought their place to be secure from curious eyes. Izaya lifted his hands to show he held no weapon in them, keeping silent about the knife sewed into a pocket inside of his hoodie, and endured the prying hands wandering over his form in search of any dangerous tool. When one of the men pulled the mobile phone from his jeans' pocket, Izaya laughed it off.

"It's just a phone," he chuckled. "Don't worry, it won't bite you."

The snarky comment earned him a push to the shoulder, but Izaya ignored the rough gesture. He was used to this. It was part of the "welcoming rituals" in these circles.

Explaining words were exchanged, Izaya keeping a close eye on the men around him. They were mostly excited Betas, still wet behind their ears, with some older Alphas in between. But Izaya wasn't searching for any Alpha. He was looking for _the_ Alpha, the man who was actually running this ridiculous group.

Further in the background, posture relaxed and face calm, he found him.

He was maybe in his late twenties, with a non-threatening, ordinary exterior. Izaya ignored the excited pups around him and approached the man, hands still in the air.

He caught the slight look of surprise darting over the man's face.

"My name is Orihara Izaya," he introduced himself without waiting for an invitation. "And I would like to help your group as an informant."

From then on, it was an easy game. Izaya knew how to persuade these kind of Alphas, the ones with a strong wish for dominance and control. They all reacted to the same key words, to the same offers, to the same body language. He displayed a non-threatening posture; legs crossed, hands in his lap as he spoke. The last thing he should do now was to give this Alpha the impression he might be someone to be thought of as an opponent.

They sat like this on the couch in the far back of the hall for a few hours, Izaya nodding and listening as the Alpha spoke. He smiled when it was appropriate and cast his eyes away when the other man seemed out to challenge him with a look.

It was going very well.

Until Izaya noticed the slight tremble in his hands.

Discreetly, he folded them together, trying to hide the shaking from his conversation partner. Beneath his light clothing, Izaya felt the hint of a sweat cling to his skin. He swallowed, his heart starting to jump excitedly inside of his chest. This shouldn't be happening. This _couldn't_ be happening! Had he not finally satisfied his heat's urges last night? Throughout the day, his body had not given him any signals of another approaching wave. Izaya felt the bitter taste of betrayal in the back of his mouth.

Betrayed by his own nature, once again.

Izaya faked a laugh, gesturing towards the clock on his mobile phone.

"My, my, it's gotten so late. I will gladly tend to the commission you gave me. As a sign of my honest intentions, because I really do want to work with your group, I will take care of the matter for free. Do we have an agreement?"

The Alpha stared at him. The sudden change in his guest's behavior threw him off. He squinted at Izaya suspiciously.

"Do you have anywhere else to be, Mr. Orihara?"

"Oh, no, that's not it. But, actually, yes, I do have to be somewhere else… I mean, those requests don't fulfill themselves, now do they? You will hear from me in the near future!"

He made to stand, a bit too quickly, and he saw how the Alpha's posture went rigid. Izaya kept his smile upright, trying to calm down his quickly beating heart, fearing it might reveal him to his opponent. The subtle heat under his clothes had a bit of sweat pooling at his lower back and Izaya made sure to back away from the Alpha with his front still faced to him.

"I am glad we managed to find common ground," he babbled on, the palm of his hands opened towards the other man in a placating gesture. "I shall return to you as soon as my work is done."

"Do that," the Alpha muttered, slowly walking after him as Izaya made to back out of the hall.

"Well, then… I shall see you around. Have a good evening!"

With that, Izaya finally turned his back on the Alpha and the men next to him, feeling their eyes bore into his shoulders. It took him only a few long strides until he was out of the abandoned warehouse, directly heading to the busy road not far from the place.

Behind him, the Alpha watched his slim figure disappear into the approaching nightfall.

"Follow him," he said, and to his right three figures released themselves from the protective shadow of the warehouse.

As they began their slow pursuit, the city's first lights flickered awake.


	4. Chapter 4

**Trigger warning for this chapter: Attempted sexual assault.**

 **EDIT: I was informed Akabayashi doesn't carry a crane around with himself but a cane. Who knows, maybe he is an aspiring birdlover, but for now I changed my silly mistake. Thanks at pichu10176 for pointing it out!**

He realized he was being followed when Izaya was only a few streets away from his home.

The men that so stubbornly stayed on his heels must have been on to him since the warehouse. He had no other explanation; besides, putting coherent thoughts together turned out to become more and more difficult for him.

The heart inside of his chest was thudding excitedly, because of his body's reactions, and because of fear. He felt for the knife seated in the inside pocket of his hoodie. It wouldn't do much for him if the men choose to attack him all at once. Usually, Izaya was able to take on any opponent, thanks to his quick reactions and overall swiftness. But right now he felt weirdly dizzy, his brain slow on the uptake as if he was packed in absorbent cotton.

He bruised his shoulder when he lost the balance at the next corner, leaning against the cold brick wall and tried to steady his breathing.

It's not that far anymore, he thought to himself. He could make it home unharmed, but he had to move for that – now!

With a huff, Izaya pushed his trembling frame off the wall, and continued his way back home on shaky legs.

Behind him, the men followed silently, like predators tracking their dying prey.

 **oOoOo**

Not far from the scene, only a few streets away, a man lifted his head, sniffing the air expectantly. Shizuo frowned when he picked up a familiar scent, but it was mingled with something else. Something untypical.

He had his back turned to Tom, who was talking to a client in his enduringly unharried voice. The interaction between the two men had a strange subtle undertone. While Tom was speaking with no haste, the man in front of him was shaking and kept begging for more time. Shizuo had learned to listen away whenever Tom settled a transaction. It was better for the health of the people around him. For his own he didn't have to worry, it had been years since one of his fits had managed to break a bone in his body. Shizuo was a fully grown Alpha now. He was strong, healthy and had an exhaustless source of anger inside of him. It was strange how contradicting Tom's and his characters were. But opposites attract, or balance each other out… Something like that.

The familiar smell distracted him enough to miss the exasperated sigh coming from his employer.

Shizuo started to walk forward.

"I'm leaving," he simply announced, both hands shoved into the pockets of his slacks.

Tom gave him a worn out look, the same look a parent had when their child was about to ruin that expensive vase of their neighbors. He bit back the comment on his lips, and instead turned to face his shaken customer.

"Ignore that," he said to the trembling man in front of him. "Sometimes, he does that. I just have to leave him be then. He doesn't really listen to me when this happens, but he's a good fella besides his inability of focusing on the current situation. He's like a dog who just saw a bike ride past and feels the unbearable urge to chase after it, so he can sink his teeth into its wheels. Oh well, at least it never gets boring with him. Now, where were we…"

Shizuo was already out of reach to hear Tom's little speech. Instead, he followed the stench that filled his nose and attracted all of his focus and attention.

"How come you never listen to me when I tell you to stay out of this city, Izaya?" he mumbled, voice steady despite the barely suppressed anger swinging in it. He kept muttering under his breath as he searched for the source of the odd smell.

 **oOoOo**

He wouldn't make it. The realization quickly dripped into his conscious mind as Izaya stood, both hands on his knees and breathing against the rising nausea.

"What's happening to me?" he whispered, groaning when another hot wave lashed his nerves.

This wasn't the typical heat he endured since many years now. This was something new, and Izaya had no clue of how to handle it. The thought instilled a dull terror in him.

Maybe he was getting sick? Maybe the mating had an atypical reaction on him? Maybe his body had been so used to having its urges ignored, that now, when it had finally been acknowledged, it propelled into some kind of overdrive? He remembered the searching looks Shiki had given him this morning, the man's voice reverberating inside of his head, asking if he knew how to handle himself.

Izaya groaned. Obviously, he didn't know.

But the memory sparked an idea in his head. With trembling hands, he pulled out his mobile phone, quickly sliding through his contacts. When he found the desired name, he started typing a text message. At this point, Izaya didn't trust himself enough to form any coherent sentences anymore, and so he prayed that the man would see his text soon enough.

[ _Something's happening to me. I'm being followed. Come quickly. I'm at-_ ]

He stilled when he felt a new presence behind himself. The alley, where he was leaning against a rough stone wall, was dark except for a street light a few meter away. Izaya turned his head, trying to make out the men's faces in the darkness behind him.

"Why, isn't that our new informant?" he heard one of them chuckle in feigned surprise.

His gut turned when the two other men reacted with dark laughter at their companion's words. He couldn't see their features in the dim light of the alley, but he could make out their tall forms. Broad-shouldered, they built up before him. Izaya's gaze slipped lower and he realized how the man's hands twitched excitedly, the one who had spoken first.

"Leave me," he managed to press out, his lips feeling somewhat numb.

It earned a stagy noise of disappointment from the men.

"We're just here to talk to you," the first one said, lifting his heads as to calm a shy doe.

With shaky fingers, Izaya fumbled out the knife inside of his hoodie's pocket and let it snap open. The men took a step back.

"I s-said," Izaya stammered, "Leave!"

He tried lifting his arm to hold the knife protectively in front of his body. But his limbs wouldn't listen to him. It took all the concentration he had to stay upright.

Now, the tone of the man turned sinister, and Izaya involuntarily flinched at the growl.

"You seemed more cooperative when you talked to the boss," the man hissed and took a step in Izaya's direction. "What's up with you? Are you playing some kind of double game here? Huh? Answer me, punk!"

His arm shot out to grab at Izaya's throat, but the Omega quickly stumbled backwards, lashing out with his knife. The man yelped, his hand only grabbing the scarf wrapped around his neck and ripping it off. Droplets of blood fell to the ground. The knife had left a deep cut in the man's arm. For a moment, silence fell over the scene. The man stared at his freshly acquired wound, his fingers still clutching the scarf. Then, he turned his dark gaze towards Izaya.

"You bitch," he pressed between gritted teeth. "I knew you were just a snitch. You're going to pay for this. Grab him!"

At his command, the other two men dashed at Izaya. He tried fending the hands off who grabbed at his hoodie, but as he lifted his knife it was knocked out of his hand. Panicked, he bit at the fingers as they tried to get a hold of his hair. It earned him a mocking laugh, and then his head was brutally bent back, baring his throat.

Suddenly, the hands tearing at his hair stilled.

"What the hell?" he heard the man closest to him mutter. "Are these marks?"

Izaya swallowed down the whimper that threatened to spill from his lips. He had completely forgotten about Shiki's marks. They got exposed when the first man ripped off the executive's scarf.

The other two men stepped closer to him. Izaya's arm shot out, trying to scratch at the nearest face, but his wrist was caught and turned at an unnatural angle. Izaya hissed when a sharp pain shot up his arm.

He focused on his breathing, trying to get his thundering heart beat under control as the men examined his neck. He couldn't see much from the angle his neck was held, and so he stared upwards, at the tall buildings around them. By now, the first stars had climbed their way onto the sky's firmament. It all pointed to a beautiful clear night. Izaya swallowed against the lump in his throat. He felt pinpricks of angry tears sting at his eyes' corners.

He flinched when rough fingertips dragged across the marks on his neck, but the hand in his hair kept him from escaping the prying touch.

"You little whore," he heard the first man mutter, his surprised tone tinged with quickly flaring rage. "This guy's just an Omega. Not only a snitch but a phony on top. Who sent you, huh? Your Alpha? What, was he too scared to come along himself? Instead he sent his bitch to us. How about we teach him and you a lesson, that he shouldn't mess with our gang?"

The fingers vanished from his neck, instead, a hand closed around his jaw, tightly squeezing his cheeks and forcing Izaya to look at the man's mug in front of him. He was met with furiously flashing eyes.

"I'll give you something to remember next time your man touches you, you fucking slut!"

Izaya panicked when he felt hands starting to tear at his clothes. With gritty determination, he yanked his head free from the hand on his face. He used the moment of surprise and took a deep breath.

"Help!" he screamed into the quiet of the night. "Somebody, help me! Please! Hel-"

He was cut off when a hand shoved over his mouth, muffling any word that was about to come out. Izaya threw his head around, trying to shake off the hand, but the fingers only ended up brutally digging into his skin. Suddenly, a leg was hooked into his and Izaya lost his balance. He stumbled backwards, the hands finally releasing him. All air was forced out of his lungs when he hit the ground. For a moment, all he could see were stars exploding in his vision. Then he felt the dull throbbing pain in his head.

Izaya groaned, hands scrambling over the wall to his right for balance. He didn't have long before he felt a weight on him. The young man yelped, shoving at the brought figure pressing his own smaller form down into the hard concrete. A hand shoved itself between his knees and forced his legs apart. Izaya squirmed, trying to crawl away and escape the hands that were tearing at his clothes, and the weight suddenly leaning down on his lower body. He kicked at his assaulter, but to no avail.

Then, there were more hands, grabbing his flailing arms and pinning them down.

Izaya screamed and now the angry tears were falling from his eyes, running over his temples as he bent his neck back to escape the sight of the men holding him down.

 _This can't be happening_ , it echoed in his head, blending out the noises around him. _This can't be happening. This can't be happening. This can't be happening._

The zipper of his hoodie was roughly dragged down and his shirt torn open, exposing his skin to the chilly night air. He whimpered when rough hands started to drag across his skin, scratching over the bruises on his side.

A sudden wave of anger shook him. These were Shiki's marks. Nobody was to see them except Shiki and himself!

Izaya thrashed in his assaulter's grip.

"No!" he howled. "Get your hands off me! Fucking… - let me _go_!"

As on command, the man between his legs was gone. Izaya heard a strangled cry and then his broad form was flying through the air. He yelped, reflexively turning away. The hands around his wrists eventually let go. There was the sound of a body slamming against concrete somewhere in the distance, and the next thing Izaya heard was the familiar sound of bones snapping before a bloodcurdling scream ripped through the nightly air.

"Stop making such a fuss!" a familiar voice boomed over the man's hysterical screaming. "Don't expect people to go easy on you when you try to fight them. That's only fair!"

The screaming stopped, only to be replaced by fearful begging. The other voice rose up again. The man was laughing.

"Letting you go? Fine, I will let you go. To hell!"

The begging turned into screaming, which quickly faded from Izaya's ears. Somewhere away from their alley, a container creaked under the unfamiliar weight of a human body crashing into it at highspeed.

Then, silence fell over the nightly spectacle.

Izaya wheezed, his whole body shaking from the adrenaline rushing through his veins. He curled in on himself, turning away from the steady steps approaching him. He shielded his body from any eventual blow, mind too fuzzy to fully grasp the situation. His skin still felt heated; by now he had broken out into a full sweat. He groaned when another hot wave shook his slim frame and clutched at the torn remains of his shirt, trying to cover his skin.

"I knew it was your smell, flea," the man above him said and he could hear the glee swinging in it. "I keep telling you 'Stay out of Ikebukuro, Izaya', but you never listen to me. And tonight, I caught you doing another one of your shady businesses. Say, what did you plan on doing with these guys? Looked like they were about to mess you up. Hey, are you even listening?"

Shizuo fell quiet, towering over the trembling form of his enemy. When he approached the scene, he wasn't able to make out what exactly was happening, but he had heard the young man's screaming and his mind had turned on autopilot. Now that the unknown assaulters were out of the way, he was able to muster Izaya's form more carefully. It was then that he saw the torn clothes of the man to his feet and realized how badly he was really shaking.

He lifted a hand to drag over his own neck. "Hey, Izaya, are you alright? You don't look too good."

"Go away," Izaya rasped, pressing his shaking limbs closer to his body.

Usually, Shizuo didn't mind to see his enemy in a disadvantageous state. But something about the earlier scene bugged him. The wheels in his head were turning. It was almost audible when the penny finally dropped.

"Were they… did they touch you?"

Izaya whimpered, his eyes pressed shut. Shizuo swallowed against the sudden lump in his throat.

He had enough respect for his high school fiend to not underestimate him. The idea of finding him in a state like this in a side alley just never occurred to him. Izaya was such a controlled person. How could he ever end up in a messed up situation like he just witnessed?

Shizuo felt a sudden sting in his chest. Enemy or not, this wasn't supposed to happen, to anybody.

"You look like you have a fever," he mumbled. As he crouched down, reaching out with one hand to brush over the other man's forehead, Izaya turned his head away rather violently.

"Don't-", he whimpered, voice trembling with barely suppressed fright.

The taller man leaned back on his heels, not sure as what to do. He looked around, as if finding a clue of the next step, when his eyes fell on the cell phone lying not far from them. Shizuo rose, carefully approaching the little thing as if it could snap at him any moment. He picked it up. The display was intact and presented him the unfinished text message. Shizuo frowned and studied the recipient's name. He knew who the man was, and the association he was working with, but he had never really conversed with him before. Guess there was a first time for everything.

Still somewhat inhibited by the unfamiliar situation, Shizuo looked up the man's name in Izaya's phone and dialed the number.

It didn't take long before he heard a responding click on the other end.

"Hello, this is Heiwajima Shizuo. I think I found something that belongs to you."

 **oOoOo**

Akabayashi immediately sensed the abrupt tenseness in his companion's posture. He tilted his head, but dared not to ask while the other man was still on the phone.

"Understood," Shiki said tersely. "I'll be there in a bit. Please, stay around until then."

His hand still clutching the phone sank slowly into his lap. Shiki didn't look at him, but Akabayashi saw the darkness that overshadowed the other man's features.

"We need to make a detour," he announced, leaning forward to give the driver the address.

"Will you tell me what this is about? We're on our way to a meeting, Haruya."

Shiki shot him a quick side glance, but seemingly didn't dare to meet his eyes.

"No," he replied, voice suddenly very tense. "I just need you to trust me right now."

Trust was a big word, and something Akabayashi didn't have to the fullest for his business partner. It was a mutual meager faith the men had for each other, even though it never stood in the way of their business relationship. They respected each other. But they didn't trust each other.

Hearing the phrase come from Shiki's mouth surprised him, to say the least.

He ignored the unfurling suspicion, the experiences he had made with the man telling him Shiki wouldn't act like this if it wasn't important. After all, he could hold the man accountable at any time, should this detour prove to be a trap.

Trying to calm his mind with this thought, Akabayashi leaned back in his seat and watched the anxious mien of his companion.

 **oOoOo**

It was a strange situation. He wasn't sure what to do with himself while he waited. Whenever he came close to the shuddering mess that was Orihara Izaya, the man turned further away from him. He just laid there, trembling, sometimes letting out a choked whimper. Shizuo didn't dare to step too close to him. The sight of his enemy was too weird, too far out of what he could have imagined.

He cracked his knuckles in a nervous gesture. Every now and then, he felt a question or a reassuring word dance on the tip of his tongue. But neither seemed appropriate.

It felt like hours to him, although, it had only been something over twenty minutes judging by the clock on Izaya's phone, when a dark car rounded the far ahead corner and slowly approached them. The stark headlights blinded him, and Shizuo lifted an arm to shield his eyes from the bright light. The headlights were immediately turned off.

Two doors in the back of the car opened and two tall figures stepped out. Shizuo recognized the form of Shiki Haruya, as the man quickly approached him.

"Good evening, Mr. Shiki," he greeted.

The man seemed scattered and so he gave Shizuo a mixed look. He could see revulsion in his features. The expression struck him as odd and Shizuo automatically stepped back when he kneeled down next to the shaking figure of Izaya. He started to talk to him in a low voice and his hands brushed aside some strands of dark hair. This time, Izaya didn't flinch from the touch.

Shizuo felt his brain twist in an attempt to make something out of this strange situation.

"You must be Mr. Heiwajima?"

He turned to face the owner of the voice. A man stood in front of him, slightly leaning on a cane in his right hand. He smiled. Against the street lights further from them, it was hard to make out his facial features, but Shizuo noticed the scar peeping out from under his shades.

"Uhm, yes, I am," he said slowly, reaching to accept the hand that was pointing at him. He shook the man's hand, a short, strong squeeze. "May I know who you are?"

"My name is Akabayashi Mizuki, and this is my business partner Shiki Haruya. But it seems you two already know each other, since you called his private number."

"Well," Shizuo started, struggling to seem unfazed by this bizarre situation. "I don't personally know him, not that much at least. I just called from his phone."

At this he turned to point at Izaya.

"I see." Akabayashi watched the scene displaying in front of him. He was convinced, Shizuo knew as much as him, and so he tried to look nonchalant about all of this. In the back of his head, he felt a hard to ignore throb. This incident would surely turn out to be an unwanted mess.

He looked around the alley, noticing two human forms lying a good fifty meter away from them.

"Do you know what happened, Mr. Heiwajima?"

"I'm not sure. When I arrived, there were three men on Izaya. He was fighting them, but didn't exactly seem to have the upper hand. So I stepped in."

"Mhm. And who were the men?"

"Gangbangers, for all I know," Shizuo muttered. Akabayashi regarded him with a long look, before speaking again.

"Did they do anything to Mr. Orihara?"

Wordlessly, they both glanced over to the two men at their feet. Shiki was holding Izaya, carefully helping him to sit up.

"I don't think so," Shizuo replied, his voice suddenly having taken a darker tone. "I don't like this flea bag, but doing something like that to someone… it just makes no sense. I hate it when things make no sense."

Right now, the young blonde man before him made no sense at all either, but Akabayashi left that unmentioned.

"Well, I must thank you for your brave interfering," he said instead and tried a polite smile.

"That was just… the right thing to do," Shizuo mumbled, eyes cast away to avoid the older man's piercing look.

"Mizuki."

The voice of Shiki ripped him out of his thoughts, and Akabayashi turned to look at the Alpha. He had taken off his jacket, the white fabric draped around the boneless form of the informant in his arms. The young man still had his eyes tightly shut, fingers clutching at the executive's shirt. Every now and then, he let out a small moan, as if his body was shaken by a fever.

It was a truly pitiful sight.

When he looked at the blonde man behind him, Akabayashi caught the uneasy expression on his face. Against his will, he felt a spike of compassion rise up. It irritated him.

"This must have been a very exciting night for you," he started. "You should head home now, Mr. Heiwajima. We will take care of the rest. Thank you for your help."

He shook the silent man's hand another time, before turning to leave.

"Oh, and another thing…"

Shizuo stared at the man with the cane in his hand, as he gave him a hard look over his shoulder. "What happened tonight should be treated with outmost discretion. I'm sure you understand, Shizuo?"

The intimate use of his first name stung at his pride, but Shizuo swallowed down the rising unease in his voice. After all, these men belonged to the Awakusu group, this he knew, and he had no intentions of interacting with their business. In any way.

"Of course, Mr. Akabayashi," he said tersely and caught the man's predatory smile. The aversion he felt quickly deflated to malaise.

The strange trio - Shiki, Akabayashi and the barely conscious form of Izaya - entered the car. The dark windows kept Shizuo from catching another glimpse of the men, as the car hit reverse and slowly pulled out of the alley.

Eventually, he was left by himself and the feeling of utter unease in his gut.

 **oOoOo**

It was quiet in the car, except for Izaya's small puffs and the occasional groan escaping him. He was laid out in the back, head seated in Shiki's lap as the man carefully drew his fingers through the Omega's damp hair. His body was completely heated up, his breathing going shallow and too fast to be healthy.

Akabayashi watched the scene from the front seat of the car, having turned his body so he could look at his business partner.

"He's in heat," he stated bluntly, not feeling the need to embellish his speculation.

Shiki visibly tensed, but nodded. "Yes, he is."

"Alpha's don't go into heat," Akabayashi mused, as if he was citing a school's biology book in front of his inner eye. "Betas don't go into heat either. Which means, Mr. Orihara is an Omega."

It was a broad statement for someone who had been freshly introduced to the situation, but the two men knew he was right, just like Shiki knew that it was pointless to deny the informant's state. Deliberately, he avoided his peer's inquisitive stare. Instead, he let his gaze cling to the young man in his lap, tentatively reaching for the Omega's clammy hand and squeezing it in a comforting manner.

Izaya winced, mumbling inaudible words under his breath. The shy gesture didn't escape the other executive's attention.

"We should take him to a hospital, Haruya," Akabayashi proposed lowly, having somewhat realized the connection between the two men by now.

But Shiki firmly shook his head. "No, if we bring him to a hospital now, the information about his nature will be out and about. We're bringing him to my apartment. I will take care of him myself."

"Haruya…" Akabayashi started, but fell silent when he caught the other executive's look. "Alright, but I'm coming with you."

By the time they had finally reached Shiki's apartment, the Omega in his arms was shaking like a leaf. Akabayashi opened the door for them, and hurried to step aside. In quick strides Shiki headed towards his bedroom. Without turning the lights on, he laid the shivering man in his arms down on the soft mattress.

"Help me undress him," he let out into Akabayashi's direction, and the executive followed his command wordlessly. He knelt next to the Alpha, as Shiki tried to arrange Izaya into an upright position. The informant was like a ragdoll in his hands. Any tension had left his body, except for the fever induced tremors shaking his frame steadily. It was difficult to get the younger man out of his clothes, but they managed to skim him out of the dirty hoodie and what was left of his shirt. Akabayashi just pulled off his shoes, when Shiki turned to him again.

"I need a cloth to wipe his face. Cold water."

The Alpha nodded and rose to retrieve the desired object. When he returned, Shiki had positioned the informant in the middle of the bed, his own clothes laying carelessly scattered in front of the bed.

"What do you think is this a response to?" he asked, as he handed the man the cloth, watching, as he pulled the shaking body close to his own. The Alpha relied on skin contact and the transferred warmth between their bodies to steady the young man in his arms.

"I'm not sure," Shiki replied and carefully wiped the sweat from Izaya's face. The young man flinched when the cold fabric touched his skin. "Usually this only happens to Omegas who were abandoned by their Alphas. I guess his bodily reaction was triggered by something. Maybe the stress from the assault…"

As if on cue, Izaya's eyes snapped open. His pupils were dilated, almost wholly swallowing the brown iris. He gasped for air like a drowning man. Shiki quickly caught his flailing arms and pressed them against the Omega's chest. Tightly held like this, Izaya wasn't able to escape his grip as another violent shudder went through him.

"It's alright, Izaya," Shiki rumbled, trying to keep his voice even despite his own anxiety. "You are safe now. I'm here, calm down."

But the Omega in his arms didn't seem to hear him. Izaya keened, back arching unnaturally as he pressed against the arms holding him. Akabayashi watched the dramatic scene displaying in front of him for a moment. His peer was visibly struggling with calming the roused Omega down, his soft words falling on deaf ears. He caught the alien helplessness in the Alpha's eyes - then he made a decision. Carefully, he leaned his cane against Shiki's wardrobe and made to unbutton his shirt. When Shiki caught his movements out of the corner of his eye, he gave him a confused look.

"What are you doing, Mizuki?"

"At this rate, he will go into shock… more sooner than later" the man calmly stated. He shrugged off his jacket, then his shirt. With a hand braced against the wall to steady himself, Akabayashi kicked off his shoes. "You can barely hold onto him."

With slow steps, he limped over to his partner's bed. He tried his best not to listen to the voice of pride inside of his head, but think rationally. It was a fact that he didn't know anything about the relationship the informant and Shiki had going on at this moment, but he knew that if he didn't step in to help the other Alpha, the young man in his arms might end up a mental case. He knew what could happen to abandoned Omegas. In a time where traditions didn't have the priority they used to, some Alphas liked to forget about their own duties, to take care of their chosen mate. Just like a newborn that was forbidden any loving touch, the Omega's body would begin to atrophy in response to the lacking care. Not only did their bodies go into some kind of shock, but it often resulted in a severe trauma, preventing them from any future bond.

Akabayashi had seen some of those miserable cases, and he didn't plan on letting their group's informant become one of them.

He climbed into bed with the other two men. Shiki watched him silently. His jaw was tightly clenched as he tried to hold on to the wincing form in his arms. Akabayashi slid closer to them, close enough so he could wedge the Omega's body between the other Alpha's and his own. He took a hold of violently shaking shoulders, while his other arm slipped under Izaya's head, supporting its weight.

Just like Shiki, he pressed close to the smaller body, listening to the other man mumble words of encouragement. The young man's scent was mingled with that of Shiki and three other men he couldn't identify, but he figured them to be the assaulters'. His stomach churned at the thought of it.

Taking advantage of someone in a state like this was a disgusting crime, and it surely had left marks on the Omega's mental health. But that was something they had to worry about later.

The Omega looked shockingly small under his hand, his fingers almost being able to completely span over his sternum. Beneath the tips, he felt a rabid heart beat thunder inside of a fragile ribcage. Akabayashi pressed as closely in as possible without the risk of asphyxiating the younger man.

Minutes went by and slowly the tremors dwindled. Izaya was laid between them, mind slowly catching up to their presence. Through the faint string of his consciousness, he sensed the familiar warmth next to him. At last, his small form went slack in ease.

A loud sigh liberated itself from Akabayashi.

"That was quite the event, hm?" he mused and gently dragged his knuckles over Izaya's feverishly reddened cheek. The Omega sighed at the treatment.

On the other side of the young man's body, Shiki was silent.

"At least he seems alright now. You shouldn't leave his side for the night, though."

"I know," Shiki muttered against Izaya's shoulder. "I will stay with him."

Akabayashi made to stand up, somewhat ungainly sliding out of the Alpha's bed. He picked up his shirt and jacket, watching his business partner as he dressed quietly.

As he took his cane and turned to leave the room, ready to give the two men some well-deserved space, a thought crossed his mind. Shiki was gently caressing the young man's face in his arms, dragging a thumb over soft, slightly opened lips. The worried crease between his eyes hadn't vanished yet. Akabayashi mused over his next words for a moment.

"Haruya," he said eventually, voice lowered to a firm rumble. "This event will have consequences for you and the Omega. I hope you are aware of that."

He caught the Alpha's gaze, and almost regretted his harsh words. But then Shiki nodded quietly, a shadow of remorse momentarily darting over his face. Akabayashi waited for a response, but that's all he got from the other executive.

With somewhat mixed feelings, he left the man's apartment to step out into the still young night.


	5. Chapter 5

**Tbh, this story is kinda getting out of control. I know that when I started writing I didn't plan on it having an actual plot. All I wanted was to contribute to the small part of the fandom that appreciates this pairing as much as I do. Also, due to real life stress everything kind of turned out darker than intended. I'm not satisfied with how this story is going, but neither do I want to abandon it. I see so many abandoned stories on this website and it always bothers me. So, I'm just gonna swing along with my muse and invite everyone to join me on our lame rollercoaster. Woot, woot!**

There was a body pressed against his side and the first thought to cross his mind was "Again?".

Everything hurt. It wasn't a satisfying ache like after a long day of walking, but one that grew deep into his bones and nestled in parasitically. Izaya kept his eyes closed, in hopes of falling prey to sweetly numbing sleep. Unfortunately, once he had woken up, it was impossible for him to fall asleep again. His mind rose to consciousness, steadily drafting away from the dream's haze, and Izaya remembered.

Instantly, he sat upright in Shiki's bed.

The familiar white wardrobe to his front was an unmissable pointer to the fact he was once again at the executive's apartment. Izaya combed his memory as to how he had ended up in the man's bed, but his brain came up with nothing. His heart began to slip out of its steady rhythm. The last thing he remembered, the last uncomfortably sharp picture before his eyes, were three unfamiliar faces, three unfamiliar pair of hands pressing him into the gravel of some side alley. Izaya clutched the blanket between his fingers tighter as more and more pictures began to flood his unprepared mind. Dully, he felt the painful stretch of skin across his bruised knuckles. It had teared when he had fallen and tried to lessen the impact with his arms. What he also felt were strangers' hands touching his chest, his sides, teasingly grabbing the marks in his flesh.

It was the sudden rush of hot anger flooding his system that pressed a defying keen from his lungs.

Before despair managed to wash over him completely, an arm wrapped around his middle, pulling him into Shiki's frame.

Izaya let it happen. He slumped against the man's chest. The same man that had told him just hours prior how he felt responsible for him. But it was too easy to blame it on him. It was weak, reaching out for the most obvious excuse he was offered in this mess that had burst open above him, almost drowning him.

It wasn't like him. There had been so many minutes where he wasn't like himself anymore. He was like a canvas, teasingly held above a stirring fire. Slowly, his holding frame would break away, until the heat eventually licked at the colors, distorting them until there was nothing left of the original picture.

Izaya didn't want to fade away.

It was an all too human thing to do, but he reached out for that offered hand and clung to the man beside him.

 **oOoOo**

This wasn't something he should need so long to decide over. Akabayashi's features creased in annoyance. The thing was, he had only himself to be bothered by right now. He stared ahead, fingers absentmindedly dragging over his own lips as his mind kept spinning in ridiculous ways.

This wasn't something he had a decision over anyway, Akabayashi thought bitterly. What he had witnessed last night… no, what he had participated in put him in an uncomfortable position. He thought of the Omega under his hands, how dire his state had been. How completely alien to the familiar ignorant appearance of the informant. The state of emergency had forced him to eliminate his personal disfavor of the situation, but now Akabayashi was far away from the two other men. Alone with that painful throb in his head.

Although, not alone in the physical sense. In the seats before him his peers discussed a current matter. Akabayashi couldn't bring himself to listen to the neverending flow of disagreements crawling out of the men's mouths. It was just another pointless argument that would be sooner or later settled with a determined word by Awakusu Mikiya. For now, he just let their rambles rain down on him without attending them with his focus.

That was, until Aozaki eventually directed them at him.

"Hey, where is Shiki anyway?" he asked, his voice audibly vibrating with irritation. "He was supposed to be here today. So where the hell is he?"

"How would I know?" Akabayashi drawled. His remaining eye lazily landed on the man before him. "He's a grown adult. I'm sure he can take care of himself by now."

Even though, a dark thought crossed his mind, as of last night he knew this was not necessarily the case.

His companion was obviously not satisfied with the rather snarky comment, but Akabayashi blocked out the sound of hostility.

It was as if he couldn't get a hold of his own thoughts. Usually, nothing would be able to shake him that thoroughly. But it were the many strings attached to this delicate problem that had so jauntily invaded their association.

Orihara Izaya, it was.

The right thing – the _logical_ thing to do – was to inform his peers of the informant's nature and openly fall Shiki in the back. But it wouldn't be like he had planned to do that. He might share a mutual distrust with the man, but that was about it. Sometimes, Akabayashi wondered what it would be like to have the man out of his way. Neither result confronted him with a satisfying outcome. For him to enjoy Shiki's miserable calamity was just not happening. He respected his peer too much for that.

His mind snapped back into the present just as Aozaki made to stand and get a hold of the missing executive. Akabayashi gave a silvery laugh, getting up in time to block the way of the fuming Alpha.

"Shu, why so upset? Let me propose this: you stay here and attend to all of your important businesses, and I shall go and reel in our missing man. How does that sound to you? Good? Wonderful, I'm already on my way!"

With a cheerful, rock-steady smile Akabayashi grabbed his cane, fleeing the scene as smoothly as he could with Aozaki's ire tirade in his back.

 **oOoOo**

Frightened. He had been frightened. Izaya hunched over the teacup in his hands. It had long ago stopped steaming and by now the sheer liquid was cold. Still his fingers clutched the little thing as if it could regain him any of his lost balance.

Nothing was right anymore.

He listened to his own thoughts merrily turning inside his skull. A steady stream of accusations.

"Will you be able to identify them?"

Izaya looked up at the man standing above him. Shiki looked worn out, paler than usual. He had stayed up all night to watch over him.

As if Izaya had ever asked for his shelter.

He couldn't get his thoughts to stop twisting, worming their way through his consciousness to the surface.

"I'm an Omega," he mumbled. "That was enough for them to attack me. They didn't need another reason."

Resentment flickered over Shiki's face. Izaya watched his features darken for a vast second, but the expression had already burnt itself into his memory. His limbs felt so, so heavy. It was as if the teacup in his hands weighed a world.

"Am I that worthless?"

He knew what he asked of the Alpha was unfair. He knew he would never receive honest affection that broke out of its realm of responsibility. It wasn't their nature. Neither of them knew how to love; they knew how to destroy. And yet, the nightly event had Izaya shaken to a depth he hadn't known existed inside of himself.

He longed for comfort, and asked a man of whom he knew he might never be able to give him what he dreaded. Maybe that's why he wanted it in the first place.

Easily, he was a masochist like that.

There was no gentleness in Shiki's eyes. His look cut right through Izaya.

"You should take this day off to get back on track. I will take care of the rest."

It had been after the other man managed to move him out of bed, to guide him under the shower so Izaya could wash away foreign scents, that the questionnaire began.

Who were they? Where is their hideout? How many?

A constant blur of words that made barely sense to him. He had stared ahead, getting lost in that bottomless distance of Shiki's eyes, as he answered mechanically to the Alpha's inquiries. It was as if he took everything that had happened more personal than Izaya. Maybe because of that he felt his chest tighten with the wish of strange devotion.

His lips curled with a bitter smile.

"There is no 'getting back on track' for me. It's not that easy."

Carefully, he put the teacup aside.

There it was, the bitter accusation that held his mind occupied for the past hours.

Shiki frowned. "What?"

"You said, you felt responsible. I will gladly hand it to you. But stop treating me like I'm the one who needs to step away from the situation. There is no chance of doing that for me. The question is, will you stand to your word? Or did you change your mind?"

The boundaries were leisurely overstepped, just like that. Something Izaya would enjoy in any other moment. But the malapert thrill ruled in absence. It was a shame really, how two nights happened to change him so easily. The outrage over the events overshadowed his usual curiosity and fascination for everything that was human. He had gotten too close to the fire and now his skin was bristling.

Shiki can't exceed his expectations. Izaya wasn't sure if it made him glad or not.

"I won't abandon you."

He watched something light up in the man's eyes, something far from tenderness. It was good enough for him.

 **oOoOo**

The one thing somebody had to know about Akabayashi was that he wasn't _nice_. Nothing about him was supposed to be pleasant. Not the way he talked, dolorously calm for some people. There was always a hidden venom behind his words as they fell from his lips, topped off with a smile that danced on the borderline between shy and carnivorous. The charming aura he had perfected over the past years, the picture of a balanced man, was fake. A simple mimicry to lure his prey in, cradling them in false security. It was so easy to snap their necks when they didn't expect it. He embraced his nature willingly, welcomed it with all its sharp edges and cutting mendacity.

No, Akabayashi wasn't nice.

But neither was he a wild dog who would jump at the next best throat. Those times lay behind him, when he roamed the streets looking for trouble. He had received his amends for that ages ago.

With a familiar gesture he took off his shades and carefully rubbed over the outlines of his scar. The damaged skin was a grounding feeling against his fingers, hurting for a bare moment as it reminded him of old wounds. He wasn't scared of the pain. For him, it was a chance to settle his thoughts in all this chaos. The one stable variable.

Akabayashi fixed his looks, putting the shades back as he looked up at the building in front of him. The complex towered over his form silently, as if having long awaited his presence. There he was with his stray thoughts. Still, he hadn't managed to settle on a verdict. On his way to the younger executive Akabayashi had attempted to list the pros and cons of his current knowledge. He quickly came to the solution that he didn't know that much after all.

He wasn't a nice man. But neither was he unnecessarily cruel.

Thoughtfully, he tapped his cane on the ground.

As much as he was aware of his own duties, he was curious. No, even more than that. He was eager.

Whatever should come out of the approaching encounter with the other Alpha, Akabayashi would swing with it and make up his mind as he went.

He felt a familiar thrill prickling up and down his spine. This was a fight he couldn't back away from, it left him no choice. It was this realization that had him take the last steps into the building, that sharp smile playing around his lips.

 **oOoOo**

Shiki wasn't pretty. By no standards in this world could he count as beautiful. He had rugged looks. Long bony fingers that were rough and unforgiving at the slightest touch. A face that had managed to age early under pressure and countless sleepless nights, mixed with the bitter tinge of nicotine. Izaya licked that taste off his lips willingly. It was slowing down the carousel in his head which had so happily continued to spin, no matter how often his stomach flipped with each new turn. In this mess, in this terrible chaos that had erupted around him, it was a constant he gladly welcomed. He drew his fingers through short dark hair, nails scraping at the scalp beneath. His front was pressed flush against that of the Alpha. He could feel their hearts beating beneath, the organs not able to find a common rhythm. Izaya didn't know if it was his that refused to beat in the right step, or if it was Shiki's.

But that didn't matter. It wasn't the heart he desired. It was the machine it was caught in.

Rough hands. Taught muscles that stretched under a pale complexion. Not as light as his, but definitely missing the approving kiss of sunlight. There was nothing beautiful about the man pressing him close. Only the ever so present background noise of forlorn control and a gentleness too bitter to be genuine. Izaya kept his eyes open as he bit the lips on his. It earned him a disapproving growl and a careless hand in his hair, dragging his head back. Shiki stared at him. There might be the chance that any other person would miss the presence of affection in the man's eyes, but not Izaya. He could drown in the vast span of undisclosed desires that met him. It was as bitter as the steadily growing dark spot inside his heart, and in this they found common ground.

Izaya didn't need beauty. What he wished for was that taunting slip of his own control. Just for once, he would like to lose it willingly.

He took the chance that was offered to him.

The more he lost control, the more he was drawn to the older man.

His own thoughts tasted acrid on his tongue as they remained unspoken. It was only the heavy weight in his bones that reminded Izaya of all that was wrong. He had snapped, there was no other way to say it. If he wasn't so occupied with unbuttoning the man's shirt he would laugh at the shattered mess laid out before him. The realization that Izaya had lost any grip on his choices, that his dearly held freedom was on the verge of being teared down, sent something inside of him over the edge. The despair he felt turned into a hot panic, and he reacted by instincts alone.

When Shiki had made that promise, that he would not leave Izaya alone, the borders he had so carefully drawn around himself were broken down. Izaya didn't know what it felt like to be taken care of. He didn't know what it felt like to have a shoulder he could lean on. It had always been him and his own fright. The chance to transfer some of his own bitterness into Shiki's open palms, to just let things happen and not be afraid of falling into some empty space with the possibility of breaking his spine on collision, was desired. And it was taken without as much as a second thought.

Izaya hissed when the Alpha bit his lip in return, just not as playful as he had. He tasted the warning in the blood, and so he refrained from tearing the man's skin in response. Blunt nails dug into the flesh of his back, having the Omega arch into the touch.

All of his ached for the body pressed against it. His breath sped up, lungs begging for air as their lips melted together. Shiki was all hard edges and so was his kiss. It was a scarcely controlled force. Nothing was gentle about him. Nothing was tender about this.

Like pliant loam Izaya let the rough hands bend his form to their liking. He leaned his head back when teeth grazed his throat. The hand in his hair was keeping him in place as Shiki sucked on the delicate skin right over his pulse. Izaya shuddered at the feeling. It was different to the last time. There was no haziness this time, he felt everything the man did to him with a cutting clearness. He pushed the fabric of Shiki's shirt aside and finally his hands were able to touch the still unfamiliar body beneath. Coy fingers drew across a skin that was even in some places, rugged in others where Izaya could feel old scars that spoke of a past he knew nothing about. His fingers dragged over an especially prominent one, running from just above the navel to where the ribcage began. The Omega dropped his head to be able to look at the mark.

"Looks painful," he huffed, as his fingers ran along the outlines.

Shiki followed his gaze. He took a hold of the curious fingers, squeezing Izaya's hand in his.

"Just a little conflict of opinion with a client," the other man replied. His words gave no hint of emotions away.

Izaya tugged his hand free so he could press his fingers back into the scarred skin. "I bet."

It earned him a small groan spilling from the Alpha's lips. With a hand on his hips Shiki turned them around in a fluid movement, pressing Izaya into the table he had been leaning against until now. Next, the young man shrugged out of the borrowed shirt covering his frame. He leaned back until he was sprawled out on the surface. It felt pleasantly cold against his heated skin. The hands on his hips began to tug at his pants and Izaya pressed himself up so Shiki could pull the hindering fabric off his legs.

A hot rush ran through his body, comfortably taking seat in his groin as the other man nestled between his spread legs. He could feel the beginning wetness, together with the outline of his hardening cock still trapped in dark briefs. Izaya pushed up so he could lean back on his elbows, welcoming the next kiss with already puffy lips. It felt strange. He had never kissed anyone before. Maybe he would have given it a thought sooner had he known what a pleasantly tingling sensation it helped to erupt in his belly. Izaya sighed against the rough drag of teeth as Shiki bit at his jaw.

There was a hand on his thigh, digging into the flesh, gradually wandering lower until Shiki's thumb pressed into the inner side of it. Izaya purred, rolling his hips to urge the Alpha on wordlessly. When his request was ignored, he wrapped his legs around the man's middle, pulling him in. He crossed his ankles, successfully trapping Shiki. He needed him close, needed him pressed against his own form until he could feel the heat seeping from Shiki's skin into his own. The Alpha leaned down, placing his elbows next to Izaya's head so he could look him in the eyes. The hand closest to his head began to play with some strands, picking them up and letting them glide through his fingers. Shiki watched him silently. Slowly, Izaya began to melt under the man's eyes. He whined, a high pitch in his throat. He didn't want the older man to look at him like this. Like Izaya was something to decipher and understand. Like he meant _more_.

"Please," he whispered, the smallest of sounds falling from his abused lips. It stung where Shiki had bitten down. It was a word he grew used to.

The other man bowed his head and placed a too soft kiss on Izaya's mouth. The ache inside of him reared up.

Izaya reached up, grabbing the Alpha by his shoulders and pressing their mouths together in a rough manner. It extinguished any coy note, and they were back to teeth and nails scraping at each other's skin. His hands climbed over Shiki's shoulders, to his neck, resting there for a moment and feeling the man's quickly beating pulse against his fingertips. Then he shoved them under the shirt's collar, dragging his nails across a broad back. Shiki hissed against the Omega's lips when they dug in, leaving little half-moons in his skin he was yet to discover.

He parted his lips obediently when Shiki carefully licked at them, opening up and allowing the other in. Izaya breathed into the kiss, a sound escaping him when he realized the foreign feeling of another tongue's tip dragging over his. But he could taste him, and God, he tasted like everything he needed.

Izaya tried to crane his head up, press further into the other man, but Shiki wasn't giving in. He kept the Omega flat on the table's surface, a subtle yet convincing play of dominance. He wouldn't give up his control to Izaya, not at any point. The young man began to breath heavily, each breath ghosting as a warm exhale over Shiki's skin. He unhooked his ankles so he could dig his heels into the Alpha's lower back, trying to spur him on. Anything, but he just needed him to _move_. Shiki interrupted the kiss to laugh huskily, taunting the other. He already knew how eager Izaya could get, but it wasn't less amusing than the last time. He grabbed one of Izaya's leg, hooking it over his shoulder. The new angle allowed him a wider space between the boy's legs, and he pressed into that. Izaya gasped, craning his neck back, baring his throat. There was already a hickey forming where Shiki had sucked at his pulse. The sight of the mark satisfied a primal desire in him. He dragged a thumb over the old remnants of their first mating, feeling the uneven skin underneath. Lightly, he pressed into the most prominent one. Izaya's head jerked forward, a hand hurriedly batting his away.

"Don't," he hissed, but it came out like a plea. Shiki stared at him blankly, the sudden gesture having thrown him off. "Last night… they-"

He didn't need to say it. There was no need for an explanation and Shiki refused to ask any of him. Silently, he watched the crack in Izaya's composure tear open a bit wider, bleeding out a strange fear in the Omega's eyes. He let his hand sink, bracing it next to Izaya's who was covering the old marks like an ugly sight. Like something he had to be ashamed of.

Shiki felt his chest tighten.

He opened his mouth, still searching for words – of comfort maybe, but to whose comfort he didn't know – when the sound of the door-bell pierced the silence between them.

Shiki looked up in irritation, momentarily forgetting the young man beneath him.

"You should get that," Izaya mumbled quietly, releasing his tightly-wound leg around the other's middle, although reluctantly.

The sound came again and Shiki felt his, despite his usually composed exterior, short-lived temper spike up irritably. He pushed himself off the table and stalked over toward door, not caring to close his shirt.

"This better be important," Shiki muttered, as he reached for the door.

With a bit too much force, it swung open. Before him, Akabayashi flashed him a coy smile.

"Ah, hello Haruya. Mind if I come in?"

 **oOoOo**

There was amusement in his eyes as he caught sight of the ruffled looking executive. His hair was in disarrange, more so than usually, and his shirt unbuttoned. Akabayashi quickly realized he had managed to butt in on a delicate situation. Nonetheless, he leisurely stepped into the apartment, ignoring the irritated face of his peer.

"Now is not a good time, Mizuki," Shiki began, hand still on the door as if closing it behind the older executive might give away his chance of shoving the man right back out again.

Akabayashi came to a halt next to him. He tilted his head, so he could look at the Alpha over the brim of his shades. "Trust me, there couldn't be a better time for what I have to tell you."

Shiki's face darkened at the ominous remark, but finally closed the door to the apartment. Akabayashi wasn't the man for unannounced friendly visits and so he felt a familiar suspicion settle in his gut. The other Alpha had already strolled past him, the tip of his cane emitting a soft sound on the wooden ground as he walked into the living room which connected to the small hall.

"Ah, Mr. Orihara," he greeted the young man. Izaya nodded respectfully at the new guest, just finishing to button up Shiki's shirt he had previously shed. "It's good seeing you awake again."

At this the Omega hesitated. "How do you…"

"Haruya didn't tell you?" Akabayashi questioned, feeling an amused smile tug at his lips when he watched the wince dart over the informant's face at the use of the executive's first name. "I was there yesterday. I saw everything."

Izaya's expression slipped, his chest tightening painfully.

"Everything?" he mumbled and his fingers tightened around the shirt's fabric, clasping his belly as if to protect it from an incoming attack.

Akabayashi laughed, a sound too clear and nonchalant. With slow steps he approached the couch and sat down with a slight huff. The cane never left his hand, as he placed it across his lap. He caught Izaya's eyes glued to the object. There was apparent panic growing on the young man's face and for a moment Akabayashi tended to the more sadistic side of himself, leaving the boy to fidget in the silence he created. He felt a presence behind him, craning his neck to catch the sight of Shiki. The man was frowning at him. When Akabayashi presented him a smile that was all teeth and no joy, he could watch Shiki's lip pull up the slightest bit, presenting him the row of teeth behind. A subtle, possibly unconscious gesture of threat.

He decided not to call his peer out on it. After all, it was him who had waltzed into the home unannounced. Pushing his chances might escalate the situation in a way he hadn't planned on.

"Well," he began, letting his head loll forward again to look at the still frozen Izaya, "there is nothing to worry about for you. That's what I came here for, to tell you. I, personally, don't care about your… _condition_ , as you are not directly associated with the Awakusu group. Of course, I can't speak for my colleagues. But I can imagine they would not be as willing to let you off that easily as me. Both of you, for that matter."

At this he turned his head the slightest bit into Shiki's direction, watching the man out of the corner of his functioning eye.

"Actually, Izaya – I can call you Izaya, right? – I'd like to talk to my peer alone for a moment."

They were innocent words, but Izaya understood the nature of the seemingly casually dropped question. He knew, Akabayashi wasn't half as considerate as he made out to be. The man was too calm, too aloof about the situation, especially given his position as one of the executives of the criminal association. Where he could read Shiki's face and body language by now, indicating when the man was about to accept his presence or shred him to pieces, Izaya was at a loss with Akabayashi. He had always felt doubts for the man.

The older executive lowered his head, watching him closely over the brim of his shades.

"Izaya," he rumbled darkly and the unfamiliar tone had Izaya's hair stand on edge. He felt the reflex to obey in his guts. Before the revelation of his nature he would have shrugged it off, so as to cover his submissive urges. But there wasn't really a point to that anymore, was there?

"Of course," he muttered, just being able to keep the venom out of his voice. He threw Shiki a glance, who simply nodded as a gesture for the Omega to follow the executive's request. Izaya tried to keep the frustration out of his features as he made to leave the two men to themselves.

 **oOoOo**

Akabayashi followed the figure of the Omega with his eyes. There was a slight tension in the way he moved, like Izaya was reluctant to turn his back on the Alpha. His mouth twitched when he caught sight of his bare thighs, just the slightest bit reddened where Shiki had grabbed him. Unconsciously, he flicked his tongue in approval, as his mind wandered to imagine just what delicate scene had had interrupted there.

Behind him, Shiki grew more unsteady by the second.

"So," he grunted, ripping the other Alpha out of his thoughts, "you wanted to talk?"

"Ah, right," Akabayashi chirped. "Why don't you sit down, though? It looks uncomfortable having to stand there the whole time."

It was one thing to barge into his apartment, and a whole other to invite Shiki to sit inside his own home. Akabayashi was dancing on the knife's edge here, this he was aware of, but there was an almost ingenuous urge to tickle the younger executive, if only to see if he would attempt to rip off his head right then and there. Shiki didn't mind violence, but neither was it his first choice of action. That's why he surrounded himself with the informant. He believed in the power of information. Akabayashi believed in the force of the man's fist that he had managed to attain once or twice in the past, when they had been younger and wild, still in need of breaking their horns. Akabayashi himself had been someone else back then and he had welcomed the thin patience of the young Alpha, had scraped at the surface and watched in utter delight when Shiki's face slipped from composed to wrathful in the blink of an eye. But those times lay behind them now. They had concluded peace in a wordless manner, with the knowledge of the other's skills and abilities in the back of their minds.

Still, Akabayashi hadn't burnt himself enough yet to refrain from his playful urges.

Shiki sat down on the couch across him. Nonetheless, the tension remained in his figure, as he leaned forward, bracing both elbows on his knees. His shirt was still open and so Akabayashi had a good view on his chest, heaving with a sigh that sounded dangerously close to defeat. With a sweeping move, he lifted the cane off his lap and stood. It caught the other's attention fast enough, Shiki watching him with a darkening expression as he strolled over. As the older executive came closer, Shiki leaned back on the couch, as if to avoid having the Alpha too much in his personal space. He came to a halt right in front of him, forcing Shiki to crane his head up to be able to look at him.

"Did I interrupt anything?" Akabayashi drawled in false coyness. He mustered the visible outline against Shiki's slacks.

The younger Alpha frowned, a deep crease forming between his eyebrows.

"You know damn well what you interrupted," he growled. Shiki flinched when a foot was suddenly placed in his groin. It wasn't a hard move, but a noticeable weight against his cock. He was so sensitive by now, not being used to having his need ignored for so long, and so he hissed when Akabayashi increased the pressure slightly.

"Seems like you need to take care of some things," he muttered, followed by a shallow chuckle when he caught the other executive's hateful look. Shiki made it so easy for him to tease the man, pushing him dangerously close to the verge of a tailspin. "Allow me to help you out."

Shiki winced in visible irritation.

"If there is one thing you're good at, Mizuki," he rumbled, each word having a cutting sharpness to it, "then it's to make things even worse."

It tugged a pearly laugh from the other Alpha. Akabayashi leaned forward, watching with content at Shiki jerking when the pressure by his foot became borderline painful. "How can you know if you don't even let me try, Haruya?"

The familiar name dripped off his lips like warm honey. He was playing a dangerous game. If it was any other Alpha Akabayashi was sure he would be down on the floor by now, with a pair of teeth against his throat. But Shiki knew him too well, knew how he loved to push all the right buttons to make him go off in a matter of minutes. It always ended with Shiki drawing the short straw one way or another.

He wouldn't let himself be fooled into a losing game.

"You know," Akabayashi began, voice lowered as he was seemingly contemplating, "I always hoped you might do something stupid one day, if only so I could watch you get set straight by the young heir. But you really outdid yourself with this, I mean… not only are you fucking your informant, but he also turned out to be an Omega! Tell me, what happened first? Did you only realize when you already had your face between his legs?"

"That's enough, Mizuki," Shiki hissed, making to stand, but held back when Akabayashi dug the heel of his shoe into his groin.

"You're in no place to decide that," the Alpha said nonchalantly. "Neither is your bitch. You mounted him, I can smell your scent coming off him. How was he? Was he really into it? Or did he put up a fight when you claimed him? I always figured you might be a bit into the unwilling type-"

He didn't get further when his foot was roughly shoved away, Shiki launching himself at him the next moment. All air was pressed out of his lungs as they went down in a tumble. A hand closed around his wrist, brutally slamming it into the floor repeatedly until the cane was knocked out of his grip. Akabayashi growled, his still free hand shooting up to grab the Alpha by his throat. He squeezed with all his might, watching with satisfaction as Shiki began to wheeze, trying to wind his neck out of the unforgiving hold. An elbow knocked into his arm, successfully loosening the fingers he had on the other man and Akabayashi winced when a sharp pain shot through his upper extremity. He was the next to choke as Shiki smashed down a hand onto and around his throat, squeezing until the older Alpha's face began to tinge red. His other hand caught the fist that was aiming at his face, slamming it down next to Akabayashi's head and keeping it there, digging his nails in until the skin beneath broke.

For an excruciatingly long moment they stayed like this, Akabayashi squirming with Shiki straddling him, pressing his form down into the hard wooden floor of his apartment. He was heaving with the effort, but remained relentless.

"Stop it!" Shiki pressed between gritted teeth, head jerking back when the Alpha's free hand shot forward to grab his face. With growing concern he watched the color of the man's face go from red to a purple shade. Instinctively, the grip around his throat loosened. Akabayashi saw his chance, reared up and forward, and smashed his face into that of Shiki's. Both men groaned, the force of the blow breaking the younger Alpha's balance, throwing him off of Akabayashi at last. He was wheezing, lungs finally able to take in the much needed air again. Shakily, he rolled over, pushing himself onto his knees. Behind him, he could hear Shiki curse. When he turned he was able to take in the damage his blow had done: Shiki's nose was furiously bleeding, the dark liquid already having spilled onto his bare chest.

When he caught the other's look, Shiki spit out the blood that had collected in his mouth.

"You fucker," he growled, watching as Akabayashi's mouth twisted into a lopsided grin. "You fight fucking cheap, anyone ever told you that?"

A laugh tied itself from his abused throat, sounding somewhat broken and ending in a violent coughing fit. Akabayashi reared over, head hanging as he tried to regain control of his respiratory system. Behind him, Shiki struggled to stand, fighting the dizziness the last blow had caused him. Eventually, he managed to stand on wobbly legs, grabbing the couch for balance as he mustered his colleague still on the ground.

"You okay?" he asked without feeling any real concern. Akabayashi, still wheezing, waved him off. For a moment, Shiki stood and watched, then he let go of the couch, taking a step forward to close his fingers around the Alpha's arm, dragging him into a stand.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Akabayashi tried, slightly patting the hand on him. "I just… need to sit down for a moment."

The younger executive guided his peer over to one of the couches, unceremoniously dropping him onto the furniture. Akabayashi huffed and leaned back. He made quite the sight; shirt and jacket askew, the usually slicked back hair tousled and standing in odd directions, an imprint around his throat that turned more visible by the minute. The familiar shades were missing, having gotten knocked off his face somewhere in the brawl. Akabayashi looked up at him and their eyes met.

"You have something on your face," the Alpha muttered, making a vague circle gesture in Shiki's direction.

He didn't want to, but a smirk pulled the corners of his lips up, and Akabayashi smiled in return.

"A few years ago and you would have beaten my ass, Mizuki. You managed to get quite out of shape."

"Oh well, oh well," the executive mumbled. "It's just that you got me by surprise… I didn't actually think you would fight me right there."

He doubled over when another coughing fit began to shake him. Shiki left his side, returning with a fresh glass of water.

"Idiot," he scoffed, as he handed Akabayashi the glass, who accepted it with a weak smile. Some of his blood was smeared against the material, mixing with the droplets of water that managed to spill over the top.

"Really though, your nose is bleeding like hell. You might want to put something on that."

 **I had so much fun writing Akabayashi and Shiki beating the shit out of each other, holy hell.**


	6. Chapter 6

Shizuo tried to live a simple life. All that fancy stuff, all that glamour was nothing for him. He enjoyed the simple things. Quality over quantity. Listening to Varona and her vast spectrum of knowledge, Tom's hearty laugh at a cheesy comic he found in the newspaper, the somewhat strange but also familiar aftertaste of the food at Russian Sushi. He enjoyed the last rays of sun, casting everything in a golden light. The smell of gravel on an especially hot summer day. The rare smile of his baby brother. The times when he could just sit and look and let life pass by, just for a moment.

All of these things were precious to Shizuo, and he wouldn't want to trade them for anything.

For these reasons it was that he reacted strongly towards things that threatened to disrupt his lifestyle, that he so meticulously nurtured and protected. All Shizuo wanted was his peace. Why did there have to be people who thought it would be perfectly okay to just kick his wish, the only real wish he had, with their feet? To kick dirt onto it and laugh in his face? Yeah, how dare Izaya…

More often than he would like to admit his thoughts drifted back and forth, caught between the one thing and Izaya most of the time. There were too many things in this city that reminded him of the information broker. Too many places where he had caught his smell, found him standing somewhere in the distance, taunting him with that toothy-pegged smile of his. It wasn't like Shizuo actively tried to think of the bastard. One way or another, he would come to his mind. It was bothersome, annoying, infuriating. But how could one control their thoughts? Simply. They couldn't. Whenever these stray thoughts entered his consciousness, Shizuo just let them pass without presenting them with much attention. It was hard at first, but he had many years of practice. He accepted the Izaya in his mind as an occasional invader, who couldn't do much anyway. The real Izaya, the one made out of flesh and blood, was another deal. He only needed so much as a whiff of the flea bag's presence and something inside him would go off. Shizuo felt bad for all the times he had abandoned Tom to chase after this ghost. Just like a ghost, the young man was impossible to catch. Sometimes, Shizuo realized that he never really thought about what he would do if he actually got a hold of Izaya. Shake him? Yell at him? Throw him in front of a passing bus? He just didn't know. Instead, he comforted himself with the thought that things might just go their natural course, that he would know when the time came around. Until then, he indulged in the play of cat and mouse they had going on since the day Shinra introduced them to each other.

Sometimes, but only _sometimes_ , Shizuo would catch something like nostalgia blooming inside his chest, like a shy flower. He quickly extinguished those odd sentiments, before they could grow any sprouts.

Shizuo was a simple man, and he did not wish to be involved in any complicated drama.

Unfortunately, he also seemed to be a man who attracted drama like a nightlight the moths.

It was only the next day, when he slipped into a new pair of the bartender outfit, of which Kasuka had provided him plenty, and folded the one of the former day, that something slipped out of the pocket. With a plastic clatter the mobile phone fell to the floor. A crease quickly formed between his eyes and Shizuo bent to pick the little thing up. With one hand, he held the device, with the other he reached into his pocket to feel for his phone. It was right there. This wasn't his phone. His thoughts tripped over each other as he searched his brain for a memory that could explain the existence of this phone, which obviously wasn't supposed to be in his possession. Shizuo blew a raspberry when it finally clicked. This was the flea's phone. He had picked it up last night to call that man, Shiki, before he arrived with that other guy in tow. The one with the scar, and the prominently decorated cane of his.

The picture of the trembling Izaya materialized before his inner eye.

The whole situation had been so absurd, so alien to him, that he had decided to block it out of his memory as fast as possible. Either way, it had been a moment tainted with the bastard's presence, and Shizuo knew how much trouble the young man was, which violently went against his wish of staying true to a calm and stable lifestyle. He was convinced, it had been Izaya's own doing that he would end up in such an uncomfortable state. Of course, he hadn't allowed these men to harm the flea, because, it just wasn't right, something like that. As much as he hated the guy, as much as everything he did contradicted everything Shizuo wanted, he wasn't someone to stand by and watch. He despised violence. Against anyone.

Shizuo liked to keep it simple. And simple as that, he had stepped in to protect the flea from what could have been a scarring experience. Maybe, he dimly hoped, it had led to some kind of magical change in the swamp that was Izaya's moral standard, and the young man would try to attain a low profile from now on.

As he stared at the little device in his hand, Shizuo realized that was more than wishful thinking.

"What do I do with you now?" he asked, without expecting an answer. The mobile phone laid innocently in the palm of his hand. For a second, Shizuo played with the thought of just trashing it. But he knew himself well enough to regret this display of unnecessary violence at some point.

Without knowing what to look for, he pressed the big menu button, the display eagerly flashing on its light. First, he looked through the contacts. Except for a few names he had never heard there were things such as pizza delivery, flower shop and internet café. Somewhere in the back of his head, Shizuo struggled with the picture of Izaya ordering a bouquet. Among the names he did eventually find a familiar one – _Shinra_. Either the flea didn't care enough to cover his name with something similar inconspicuous, or he enjoyed the thought of, should anything happen to him, the police knocking at Shinra's door and sitting down on an underground doctor's sofa. The corners of his mouth pulled down a little. Yeah, he could imagine Izaya being pleased with that picture.

Absently, he looked through Shinra's profile on the phone, opening the window to take a look at the messages he had exchanged with Izaya. It was impolite and nosy to look through someone's phone, Shizuo thought, as he opened the latest text message. But this was Izaya, so the rules didn't apply. Easy like that.

As he read the letters displayed on the small screen, his brows furrowed.

 _from: Shinra_

 _i got the product u wanted. it came a little late this month, sorry. 9 at my place? bring the money._

"What the hell?" Shizuo mumbled. "Shinra, what are you…"

It hit him like a freight train. Grimly, Shizuo stuffed the phone into his pocket and made to leave the apartment, slamming the door behind him. Little cracks appeared in the walls.

 **oOoOo**

„So, did you just come here to get your ass handed to you?"

"Ah, unfortunately not. We do need to attend to the matter of the group's informant being an Omega. Excuse my earlier words, I didn't mean to insult the boy. I just wanted to break down your reserve a little."

"Yeah, no offense taken."

"Oh, is that right?" Izaya threw him a hard look. Shiki sighed, flinching when a pain shot through his nose as he pressed an ice pack against the abused spot.

All three of them were seated on the couch. Izaya and Shiki on the one across from Akabayashi. The Omega had his legs drawn up, loosely hugging them as he watched the Alpha next to him.

"It's broken," Izaya stated, not even trying to hide the disdain in his voice. When he came back into the living room, alerted by noises that sounded suspiciously a lot like two grown males falling to the floor, he was met with the sight of Akabayashi, looks more than roughed up, and Shiki, who was tending to his stubbornly bleeding nose, both sitting on the Alpha's expensive couch. It wasn't the obvious display of violence that had a frown creep onto his features, but the fact that it involved these men. What had brought them to break their perfect composure and go down in a brawl like two hormonal teenagers?

Shiki shot him a glance.

"I can fix it," Izaya offered. He waited for a sign of the Alpha to move closer in, and when Shiki lazily waved his hand, after studying his face for any possible ulterior motives, Izaya slid over. Carefully, he took the ice pack off his face, not even flinching when he was met with the blunt sight of what Akabayashi's blow had done.

"How do you know what it takes to fix a nose?" Shiki asked, head tipped back while Izaya was inspecting his face.

"I picked up a thing or two about fixing yourself from Shinra," he slowly said under his breath, feeling over the bridge with his thumb. "I mean, there were all those fights with Shizu-chan, and I didn't always get away…"

At the odd name's sound, Akabayashi's attention perked up.

"Shizu-chan? You mean that Shizuo guy?"

Izaya's head jerked around to the Alpha and he stared rather owlishly. "How do you know Shizu-chan?"

"He called you last night, Haruya, didn't he?" Akabayashi was addressing the man still awkwardly leaning his head back. He just grunted in response, not being able to move much with Izaya's fingers on his face. "He was the one who told us about you."

There was a small sound, like something snapping back in place and Shiki hissed, batting the Omega's hands away.

"Sorry," Izaya mumbled automatically. "But at least your nose should be fine now."

The brunette regarded him with a cold glare, but kept silent. In an almost defeated way, Shiki put the ice pack back on his nose, praying it wouldn't leave his face in too much of a mess the next days. That might draw some uncomfortable questions from his peers, especially if they saw Akabayashi being in a similar bruised up state.

Shiki knew, it was nothing he could elude.

"So," Izaya began, strangely quiet, like it cost him a good effort to break the silence of the room. "Shizu-chan… I mean, Shizuo called you?"

Akabayashi jumped in for the other executive, answering to the Omega's inquiry. "Yes. In what kind of relation do you two stand, if you don't mind me asking?"

He had his hands folded over the grip of his cane, face placed on top as if to present it to the Omega. Izaya caught the smirk pulling at the red-haired man's lips. He only asked Izaya for allowance in mock, the glimmer in his eye gave him away.

"I don't mind," he shot back, but his voice was dripping with venom, something he hadn't expected and which owned him a warning noise from Shiki. He didn't like his Omega being rude toward another Alpha, even if it was Akabayashi. Izaya winced, but complied. "He is an old high school acquaintance. We're not on very good terms, so to speak."

"Well," Akabayashi mused and leaned back into the couch. The cane stayed posed between his legs. "He did help you out there. You should thank him the next time you see him, kid, it's only polite."

Izaya scoffed. "I'll consider it."

"That's enough," Shiki interrupted, yanking the two men out of their silent staredown. He dropped the ice pack from his face. "Let's, for once, not get distracted by irrelevant facts. I don't care how or why you know this guy, and neither should you" – he threw Akabayashi a saying look – "so, instead, let's try to sort this mess out."

The package made a slapping sound when Shiki unceremoniously threw it onto the small coffee table between them.

"Mizuki," he began, his voice having dropped to a low rumble, signaling the other Alpha he wasn't fooling around. With slight satisfaction, he saw the older man's features go a bit taut, having caught on to the unspoken threat. "Tell me one reason why you shouldn't peach on Izaya and me, and I might scrap together enough trust to actually believe you."

"Now, that would be a new one," Akabayashi smiled sarcastically, despite the cold stare it earned him. "Well, what can I say that I haven't already? Let me put it like this: what would it earn me if I did? Absolutely nothing. The Awakusu group can't afford to lose one of its executives, again. As for your Omega, he proved useful enough by now. Honestly, I am almost hurt, Haruya. Do you really take me for such a sly devil? It's none of my business what you two do behind closed doors, as long as it doesn't interfere with our business. Until then, I promise to play nice… What do you say?"

His voice had dropped to a derisive mumble toward the end of his speech. Izaya looked back and forth between the two men. His shoulders tensed with the suppressed anger that hung in the air. He saw two Alphas staring each other down, both figures visibly taut as if preparing to pounce the other yet again at any moment. Shiki bowed his head in an unconscious gesture, as if to protect his throat, when he summoned up a reply that wouldn't escalate the situation. As much faith as he had in his own skills, he had just as much faith in those of Akabayashi. He figured, there wouldn't be a second chance for him to hold the older Alpha down, should he decide to induce a second brawl.

"If this information manages to slip past," he began, slowly, "then it's your neck I'll be after."

Akabayashi laughed, but it sounded more like a growl. "I'm fine with that…"

 **oOoOo**

"Are you selling drugs to the flea?!"

Shinra stared at him, hands opened in a placating gesture. He blinked once, twice, his brain trying to make a connection between Shizuo's fuming face and the blunt accusation.

"W-what?" he stammered, taking a step back as Shizuo took one toward him. "What are you talking about, Shizuo?"

A growl escaped the blonde's lips, as he shoved his hand into the pocket of his slacks, yanking the mobile phone to the light of day.

"This!" he hissed, practically shoving the display into Shinra's baffled face. "You're talking about drugs, aren't you? Shinra, you can't sell them to Izaya. I don't care if he takes them himself. But you know him! What if they end up in some kid's hands, huh? That's not right!"

With shaking hands, the Beta pushed the glasses back up his nose. They had slipped slightly askew when Shizuo had shoved past him and directly into the living room. He knew Shizuo wouldn't do anything to him, but neither could he help his body's basic fight or flight system. Right now, his legs were preparing to run. Quickly, his eyes flew over the message on the phone's display. All color left his face, something Shizuo noticed the instant.

"What. Does. It. Mean?" the Alpha rumbled darkly, accentuating each word individually while building himself up in front of his friend.

"I-," Shinra started, but cut himself off. His mouth opened and closed, without any word escaping, like a stranded fish. Eventually, he found his voice, without being able to keep the slight tremble out of it. "Shizuo, I promise you I'm not selling drugs to Izaya. I don't even prescribe him any medication! You are mistaken about this, believe me, please."

It wasn't the answer the blonde had waited for, and this Shinra realized when he saw the angrily pumping vein appearing on his forehead.

"Then what else is it you're giving him?"

"Doctor-patient confidentiality," Shinra croaked. It earned him a joyless snort from the Alpha.

"Seriously? I don't think I ever heard that word come out of your mouth. You are as good about keeping something to yourself as the damn flea. Listen, if you don't tell me I'll have to ask Celty. You know what a bad liar she is."

"No, please, don't involve her in this!" Shinra babbled, a sudden panic rising in his chest. His heart was beating way too fast, and his lungs couldn't take in enough air. The words came out as a slightly breathless gasp. Shizuo was displaying a clearly threatening behavior, something he usually didn't do in front of the people he cared about, but, at the end of day, even Shizuo was an Alpha, and none of them liked to have their authority disregarded. Shinra could feel something inside of him duck in familiar submission.

Maybe it was his perturbed expression or the apparent tremble in his voice, but the storm behind Shizuo's eyes subsided as quickly as it had roused. A frown was taking its stead, and the blonde leaned back, out of Shinra's personal space.

"Jeez, you act like I'm going to do anything to her. I just want to know what's going on, that's all. I mean, whenever the flea bag is involved, bad stuff happens sooner or later. Just once I want to avoid that coming toward me… Isn't that understandable?"

"Of course, of course," Shinra mumbled. His hands slowly sunk, as if in silent defeat. "But… please, Shizuo, don't get mad at me, but I can't tell you. Just trust me when I say that this is something which can only affect Izaya, and nobody else. I'm a bit hurt you thought I'm a sleazy drug dealer… after all, I _do_ want to fix the people, and not break them."

"Yeah, I guess." Shizuo's chest fell with a heavy sigh. He took a step back, looking over the slightly hunched form of his friend. Immediately, guilt began to gnaw at his conscience. "Look, Shinra, I'm sorry, alright? I didn't mean to scare you or anything."

The Beta visibly eased at the man's words. With a small gesture, Shinra waved it off, trying a nonchalant smile. "Oh, don't worry about it. It's already forgotten! Wow, why are we even here?"

He laughed, which sounded too thin and fake to be of any reassuring nature, but Shizuo didn't persist any longer. It wouldn't do his calm and stable life style any good if he followed the unsteady tracks of the flea and got involved in his business, when he wanted quite the opposite.

"You know," he started slowly, looking the Beta over carefully as he spoke, "yesterday, I saw Izaya. It was pretty messy… did he come to you or anything?"

"No, I didn't hear from him since I sent him that message, actually. Why, is he hurt?"

"I'm not sure," Shizuo muttered. He still held the mobile phone clutched in his hand, reminding himself to not squash it between his fingers.

He fell silent for a moment, his thoughts beginning to wander by themselves. It was only when Shinra quietly whined. The Beta shifted uncomfortably, still not feeling a complete release by the Alpha yet.

"Oh, sorry," Shizuo blurted. "I should go now, probably. Uhm… here, I don't know what to do with this."

The phone changed caretakers like that, the blond letting it slide into the offered palm of his friend.

"I'll remember to give it back to him the next time he comes around. Which should be soon, hm." Shinra looked away, musing over something Shizuo wasn't able to figure out. He enjoyed the brunette's company, he and Celty were always generous hosts and it was nice to see two people so unashamedly in love. Shinra was deeply attached to his makeshift Alpha, and it made Shizuo believe in the myth that there was something like the perfect match for everyone.

Except for him, of course. This only applied to people who weren't able to accidentally crush someone when all they wanted was to hold them gently.

No, Shizuo didn't believe in an ending happy enough like that. But that was alright, as long as he got to spend some time with the people who had these chances, who were happy and in love, and shared their good vibes with him.

Shizuo was a simple man, and so this was enough.

 **oOoOo**

Akabayashi left and Izaya was left alone with the battered Alpha. The confrontation with his peer hadn't lifted his mood. He shifted a bit, scrunching up his nose when he felt the wetness between his legs. So far, it wasn't too bad. Just a slow warmth curling and uncurling in his belly. Izaya was sure he could hold it off, because that's what he always did. No matter what had happened in the last two days, he had no plan on continuing this strange liaison with the Awakusu executive. Especially not now, that Akabayashi had been involved. He felt a bit bad for the man, as he had been dragged into this mess against his will. But what did it matter really. Akabayashi was an Alpha. He didn't have to worry about being discriminated against for what he was, for something he couldn't change. No, he didn't have to worry about being followed and cornered by strangers, taught to be ashamed of himself, told he could never be in control of his own life. Akabayashi didn't have to listen to his parents telling him he would end up with a person he might barely know, who would claim him, keep him like a property, while his younger sisters stood next to him, unaffected by the words as they were of an Alpha nature themselves. Izaya was the dropout of his family, in many ways. He blamed the distance to his father on his own nature. The man never made any efforts of getting to know his only son. What for, anyway? When he looked at Izaya, he saw the realization in his father's eyes that nothing great could ever come out of him. Izaya was sure, he only waited for the day that his son would arrive with a stranger at his doorstep, a collar around his throat, his future decided and fate sealed.

A sharp pain shot through his head and Izaya realized he had clenched his jaw.

His eyes wandered over to where Shiki stood, busying himself with some papers on his table. It was unfair, it was too easy, but Izaya couldn't help himself but feel a hollow resentment for the man in this moment.

"So, are we done here?" he asked, his voice vibrating with something like anger. The Alpha immediately caught up to the defiant tone, and Shiki turned around to him slowly. He mustered the young man, clad in the executive's clothes. His features gave away no hint of emotion.

"What do you mean, Izaya?"

The Omega flinched at the use of his first name. It was too personal, too intimate. It was _disrespectful_. And looking at how Shiki treated all people with upmost respect all the time, it felt even worse to him.

"Look, I just want to go home, put on _my_ clothes and get back into business. Really, I just want to forget all of this as soon as possible. Can we just say it never happened and carry on as usual?"

Shiki cocked his head. While Izaya was speaking, his expression changed from nonchalant to disgruntled. When he spoke, it was with disdain.

"You still don't understand it, do you?"

"What?" Izaya stared at the older man uncomprehending.

"There is no _forgetting_ about this. Haven't the incidents of last night taught you anything? This isn't some joke, Izaya, and nothing you can just brush off and ignore. If you keep neglecting your nature like this, it might cost you dear, probably sooner than later. You've reached a point where the world isn't doing your bidding anymore. If you don't take care of yourself now, if you can't accept what you are, it will come back to bite you. This isn't a game… you can't keep on playing pretend and expect it's not going to turn on you some day."

For a moment, Izaya just stood in the space of the living room, a slow expression on his face. Then, he felt a wave of anger rushing through his veins, tainting his cheeks red in both embarrassment and fury. He felt patronized by the Alpha, the words having managed to cut deep. Just like Shiki intended, judging by the scrutinizing look he gave him.

"You-," Izaya began, but his thoughts tripped over each other as he tried to swallow down the howl building in his chest. "How dare you?"

At first, it seemed as if Shiki was waiting for an outbreak, a violent blaze by the Omega, but when Izaya remained in his spot, trying to control his emotions in a futile attempt, Shiki flicked his tongue dismissively. Izaya's eyes darkened at the gesture.

"What's the matter, information broker? Are you not pleased with the facts? Jeez, you're like a sulky child. As soon as the things don't go as planned and the people stop dancing for you like puppets on a string you just deny everything. Do you really think this is going to get you anywhere?"

"I don't need to listen to this anymore," Izaya hissed and turned around, stomping away to grab the slacks he had taken off during their make-out session. Behind him, Shiki laughed and it raised a dull pain in his chest.

"What? Did I hit a soft spot there? I'm just saying how it is, Izaya."

"Stop calling me that," the raven hissed, quickly buttoning up the pants. He whirled around, almost knocking into Shiki who had walked up behind him. He took a step back, so he could look in the face of the Alpha without having to crane his neck. "I'm not some brat you can talk down to, alright? If you don't knock it off then-"

"Then what?" Shiki growled. He built himself up in front of the smaller male, stepping deliberately into Izaya's personal space and watching the Omega out of cold eyes. "What will you do, Izaya? What _can_ you do? You're just some kid that likes to pretend it knows anything about the world. But you should never forget who you're dealing with. I have been very nice with you so far, but I won't let you treat me with disrespect, _Omega_."

The last words buried deep into Izaya's gut. Against his will, he felt angry tears bite at his eyes. Defiantly, he blinked them away, praying the yakuza didn't take any notice of them. The last thing he needed right now was to let the man see how his words had hit Izaya in the right spot, how they put a suffocating hand over the angry fire that had roused inside of him, reducing it to nothing but a faint flicker, overshadowed by a sudden fear before the Alpha.

He swallowed against the tightness in his throat. With way too much effort, he managed a bitter smile.

"My bad, _sir_ ," he muttered gruffly, watching with satisfaction how Shiki's brows furrowed at the sudden honorific. "I should go now, before I waste more of your time with my petty affairs."

He brushed past the older man, not even giving Shiki a second look. Izaya managed two steps, before a rough hand closed around his wrist, yanking him back around and forcing him into the face of the Alpha. He was met with eyes glittering in unrestrained rage. Izaya winced, instinctively ducking his head, hating himself for the submissive reaction. The fingers around his wrist tightened and he could hear a small cracking sound emitting from the bone. Izaya whined, pushing against the larger form of the yakuza while trying to wrench his wrist free.

He grimaced when he felt the cold metal ring on Shiki's hand dig into his flesh.

"You're hurting me," Izaya hissed, inconclusively attempting to tug free.

"Isn't that what you want?" The blunt question threw him off and he stared at the man. Eventually, the surprise was replaced by white-hot anger.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" he managed to press between gritted teeth. Shiki leaned forward, as if Izaya's hand pressing against his chest wasn't even there.

"It seems like you are out to destroy yourself, informant. If you desire your own downfall so badly, I can offer to help out with that and quicken up the process for you."

His eyes widened at the dark words and Izaya felt his heart drop. He stared at Shiki, who kept him in his place with a cold look. The heart inside his chest was beating violently, pumping blood through his veins and into his extremities, urging him on to run, _just run_ , _run away_.

"Let me go," he whispered, his voice having lost all strength. "Shiki, please, let me go-"

And like that, his wrist was released. Izaya stumbled back, but caught his balance before he fell ungracefully to the floor. He rubbed his stinging wrist, still feeling the dents in his skin from where Shiki's ring had dug in. The Alpha was standing before him. His expression had changed, a mixture of still lively anger, but also regret.

"Izaya," he began, not knowing what he was supposed to say in this moment.

The Omega stared at him with wide eyes. Both men seemed at a loss of what to do. But then Izaya remembered the cold hardness in the yakuza's eyes, and his heart skipped an excited beat. The urge of flight roused up yet again.

"I have to go," the raven croaked. With his bruised wrist pressed to his chest, Izaya turned on his heels, hastily fleeing the scene. The door closed soundly behind him, leaving the Alpha alone in the suddenly too wide space.

A heavy sigh left his chest, and, winded, Shiki stared at the hand that had held the Omega in a violent grip just seconds before.

"Shit."


	7. Chapter 7

**Trigger warnings for this chapter: busted kneecap. death by fire. panic attack. dissociation.**

* * *

He didn't look at the faces of the people he passed. All he wanted was to get away, away from Shiki and his cutting words and to get back home where it felt safest. The foreign clothes on his skin were burning him, the smell prominent and suffocating. Izaya resisted the urge to rip them off his frame right then and there.

His mind was turning steadily like a carrousel, with no apparent end in sight. He listened to his racing, bitter thoughts, spiked with barely withheld anger and the familiar taste of frustration in his blood. _How could he do this to him?_ _Why did all of this had to happen? Had he not done enough, had he not been careful enough?_ Izaya knew he had made a mistake back then, when he had ignored his heat and tried to find release in Shiki's covers. But it was _one_ mistake! It seemed he wasn't meant to be granted anything easily in his life. A joyless smile pulled at his lips as he entered the subway back to Shinjuku. He had been such a fool to believe good things could happen to him, that the people around him would not eventually try to screw him over in unpredictable ways. To be fair, Izaya liked to mess with those people just as much, but at that moment he was too angry, too stubborn to see things objectively. He had no room left to evaluate the concept of karma. He was fully taken by a rotten bitterness, eagerly eating away at his insides.

Izaya's fist around the subway pole clenched. He leaned his heated face against the cold metal. It did nothing to sooth the storm raging in his mind.

The rest of the way home was a blur. Eventually he stood inside of his apartment, the door falling shut behind him. A sudden wave of exhaustion overcame him. With slow steps Izaya climbed up the stairs to his bedroom, starting to shed the clothes along the way. All the rage had left his bones. It was replaced by a fatigue that seemed to hollow him out and leave him empty. He remembered he wanted to take a shower, to wash Shiki's scent off, but he barely made it to the bed before he collapsed. His thoughts already fogged by the approaching slumber, Izaya blinked against the stinging in his eyes, recalling the picture of the Alpha; features ruled by fury and the bruising hand around his wrist. He pulled the still aching arm close to his chest, gently kneading it with his other hand. Slowly, he drifted off.

 **oOoOo**

"What the hell happened to your mug?"

Shiki looked up and was met with Aozaki's inquisitive stare. They are sat in the gallery that functioned as Awakusu's headquarters. Before he could muster up an answer, the broad-shouldered man turned around to Akabayashi.

"You too!"

Akabayashi cocked his head to the side. The choke mark, all Shiki's doing, had paled, but was still visible against his skin. The collar of his shirt did nothing to hide it, and Shiki had the feeling the redhead didn't want to anyway. Of course, Aozaki didn't know any of this and both of the other men agreed not to tell him. They had settled on another explanation instead.

"Some punks busted into my apartment two days ago. They're part of this new gang that's been messing around in our turf for a while now. I sent my informant down to their hideout to gather some information on them, but he made a mistake and they ganged up on him. Should have been easy for them to figure he was part of our organization. So, they thought it clever to target me next…"

Aozaki's expression darkened with each word. He leaned forward, closer to Shiki who resisted the urge to move his head back, and inspected the battered executive.

"Damn runts," he growled, eyes wandering over the large bruises decorating Shiki's face. "Do you think your informant spilled the beans?"

"No, he tried his best holding them off. They might just have an informant of their own. Anyway, Mizuki managed to get between the fronts when they were about to bust a cap in my head."

At the mention of his name, Akabayashi gave a mock bow.

"Always a pleasure to help, sir," he murmured, his voice heavy with implications that went straight over Aozaki's head. Shiki shot him a warning glare.

"Alright, so you two got messed up by these punks. Good job on that, idiots. What now, huh? Is this going to drag the whole of Awakusu into some dirty gang fight?"

"We don't plan on letting it come that far. Rest assured, Shu. My informant survived the assault and so I got some useful information about them. I didn't plan on wiping them out immediately, but the latest events shed a new light onto the situation."

As he spoke, Aozaki's mouth stretched into a grin.

"Ah, I see… so you two are planning on making a bit of a mess?"

Shiki regarded him out of cold eyes. It was his turn to lean forward, his gaze fixed to the large form of Aozaki.

"That, Shu, is exactly what we're going to do."

 **oOoOo**

When he woke up, the world hadn't changed.

It was still turning. He was still an Omega. His wrist was still slightly aching.

Izaya's eyes fluttered open, vision momentarily blurred by sleep's haze. Conscious mind still fogged by the dream he had, Izaya searched for a familiar body next to him. When he found none, realization sunk in that he wasn't at Shiki's place anymore.

Right.

The fight with Shiki.

A small sigh left his mouth. The bones inside his body felt heavy, dragging his weight down, making it hard to lift his arm to push aside the strands of hair that had fallen into his vision. Izaya rolled onto his back and stared at the blank ceiling above him. He didn't want to get up, wanted to curl in on himself instead and let the day drift away. But there were things he had to do, people he had to meet. Slowly, lacking the usual grace, Izaya stemmed himself up and into a sitting position. Good, that was done. It took him another minute to finally swing his legs over the side of the bed. The ground felt cold beneath his bare feet and he shivered. Izaya resisted the urge to wrap the blanket around his slim shoulders, stealing it from his bed. Instead, he pushed himself off the soft mattress and stood. What an effort. Maybe he should really just skip all his duties and pretend they simply didn't exist. No, he couldn't do that. Giving in now meant giving in to everything that had happened the past few days. Izaya wanted it all to go away, wanted to drown out those images before his inner eye; Shiki's expression when he found him on his bed, the raw violence in the men's faces who assaulted him, Akabayashi's toothy grin, and the Alpha's cutting words when he bruised Izaya's wrist.

All of it, just go away.

He roughly rubbed his face, drew fingers through messy strands, and walked forward.

Orihara Izaya wouldn't dwell on things. Orihara Izaya wouldn't let petty affairs interrupt his rhythm.

Orihara Izaya ignored the voice that told him what a fool he was.

 **oOoOo**

It had been a breeze to find the rivaling gang's hideout. Honestly, it had been too easy to be of any fun. Sure, usually Shiki enjoyed when things went smoothly. But this time he was almost disappointed they made it so easy for him. He watched the scene displaying in front of him out of distant eyes. Smoke curled in front of his face as he took a slow drag from his cigarette. Around his shoes, a bit of blood had pooled. Not his blood, of course. The original owner laid several feet away, his neck twisted at an unnatural angle, unmoving. Shiki sized up the man before him, kneeling on the dirty ground of the abandoned warehouse. There was a large cut on his face, the blood dripping into his eyes, and so he had to blink up through a red curtain toward the yakuza. His teeth were gritted in a furious display. There wasn't much else he could do. Two pairs of strong hands held his arms twisted in his back. His form was hunched over on the ground. Just an hour prior, he had laughed into the Alpha's face, ignorant to who he was dealing with.

A lesson was learned that day.

"So," Shiki began. His voice was flat, as if this was a normal conversation between two men. Perfectly fine. "Let me ask again – what other groups are attached to this one?"

He let his gaze wander around the warehouse as if he was deeply interested in his surroundings. Then he looked back at the Alpha to his feet. The other man made no effort to answer him, only stared at the brunette out of furiously glistening eyes. Shiki tapped his cigarette, a bit of ash falling to the ground.

"You see, when dealing with rats, it's of crucial importance to get rid of every single one of them. Otherwise they might spawn a new generation of nasty little fuckers. And that's not what we want, do we?"

"Fuck you!" the battered man at his feet hissed. He spat out, blood and spit landing on the shoe of the yakuza. Shiki took another drag from his cigarette.

"I see then. Well, what do you say… how much do you need your knee cap? You have two. I'm sure you can spare one."

"What the hell," the man stammered helplessly, yelping when he was suddenly dragged to his feet. He stared at the Alpha in the white suit before him, who seemed so relaxed despite a good half of his form being drenched in some stranger's blood.

"I have three issues with you," Shiki drawled. "One, your gang messed around in the Awakusu's turf, and I don't buy into you guys not knowing about it. Two, you tried to mess up my informant. And I like my informant. He's useful to us, you know. You don't find people like that often these days. Three, you have one ugly mug, and it pisses me off."

At the mention of the information broker, the bruised Alpha's head jerked up.

"Your informant?" he asked, brows furrowed. "You mean that Omega that screwed my boys? So he's your bitch, huh. Figured, the way you came barging in, looking like someone played with your favorite toy. Guess he wasn't so fun anymore after my boys had their way with him. That fucking dirty little sl-"

A bat swung into his view, colliding with his right knee and shattering the kneecap successfully. The young man screamed, a pain like he had never felt it before violently shaking his body. He stared at his leg, gruesomely bent in a way knees weren't supposed to bend. Before him, Akabayashi lazily swung the metal bat over his shoulder, taking in the sight of his work.

"Ah, sorry for having interrupted you," he chuckled, showing his prominent canines as his lips stretched into a wide smile. "But you should do something about that foul mouth of yours. It's really unpleasant to listen to."

"I'm not sure he can hear you over all that screaming," Shiki mused.

"Hmm," Akabayashi hummed, cocking his head as he watched the still howling Alpha before him. "You know what, Haruya, you might be right about that. Hold out his arm for me, will you."

The man's eyes widened in terror, as one of the men grabbed his arm.

"No, no, no! Please, wait, plea-"

He didn't get further than that.

The bat was swung again, and this time it connected with the man's left elbow. It emitted a sickening cracking sound as the bone gave way to the brutal blow. If it hadn't been for the two men holding him, the man would have doubled over, falling to the ground in sheer pain. He didn't want to look at his elbow, but his gaze was dragged toward it in what could only be morbid, self-destructive curiosity. His stomach turned when he took in the sight of what used to be his arm. Shards of bone had broken the skin, the fabric of his shirt being torn and slowly soaking up the blood from his wound. The Alpha retched. Against his will, his head jerked forward, the contents of his stomach splattering onto the concrete beneath. Akabayashi clicked his tongue in disfavor.

"Kids these days," he muttered, "can't even take one little beating."

Shiki nodded toward the two men holding the Alpha, resulting in the battered form falling over and into the freshly spilled pool of sick beneath. He listened to the man groan, squirming on the floor.

"That's 'cause they don't know one goddamn thing about who they're dealing with," Shiki scoffed. "I can't imagine one of them got up today and expected this to happen, hm?"

He didn't wait for an answer from the whimpering form to his feet. The Alpha had his eyes squeezed shut. It was only when a hand drew through his hair, grabbing a fistful and craning his neck way too far back that they snapped open. Over him stood the two gangsters. Shiki held an inconspicuous looking canister in his hands, while Akabayashi kept the man's neck bent.

"Say 'ah'," the redhead chirped, laughing when Shiki began to pour the canister's contents over the Alpha's face, resulting in him sputtering and coughing when some of the clear liquid got caught in his lungs. It had a familiar smell to it. He blinked against the liquid covering his face. It stung horribly in his eyes, but he was too afraid to keep them shut before these two men. Time seemed to come to a sudden halt, when the Alpha in the white suit pulled a lighter from his pocket.

"You know," he began, looking over the small silvery object in his hand, "I can't do much about what you did to my Omega. But luckily, he's a tough one. He'll get over what happened. I even believe he might come out of it stronger than before. Not necessarily _because_ of what your guys tried to do to him, but because he will see something in himself. Something I tried to convince him of wasn't there, unfortunately. Oh well. You, on the other hand… I don't see a similar outcome for you. And your mug _really_ pisses me off."

"Good night, sleep tight," Akabayashi cooed, the fondness in his voice surreal in this situation. The two men stepped back and with wide eyes, the Alpha watched an open lighter being flicked into his direction.

It was the last thing he should ever see.

The two figures watched silently, as their opponent's face burst into flames. They didn't say a word when the fires quickly licked away at hair, skin, fat. Soon, the bloodcurdling screams died down. The smell of burnt flesh filled the air. Akabayashi scrunched up his nose, yet the serene smile on his face didn't falter.

"This place reeks," Shiki muttered. He took a last drag from the cigarette between his fingers and flicked the stub away. "Collect the bodies. And then burn the whole complex down. I want this place gone."

 **oOoOo**

A whole day. He had slept a whole day. Izaya groaned at the numbers displayed on his cellphone. How could that even happen? And most importantly, how could he still feel so exhausted after having slept all this time? The young man tossed away the small device, letting it land right next to his other cellphones. His eyes clung to the little pile for a moment. Strange, there should be one more. He combed his memory for the whereabouts of his other cellphone, but it was already hard enough to clearly grasp the smallest of thoughts, let alone remember where he could have stored his phone.

"Whatever," he mumbled into the silence of the apartment. Izaya was convinced it would sooner or later show up.

Another strange behavior. Shouldn't he be more nervous about one of his phones having gone missing? After all, there were important contacts and information inside the little device. Izaya huffed. What did it matter. What did any of it matter.

 **oOoOo**

They managed about two minutes of silence in the car until Akabayashi decided to destroy Shiki's feeble attempt of ignoring the redhead's presence.

"Well, that was fun. We haven't done this in so long, Haruya."

The brunette stared out the window, the burning building's reflection growing smaller as they drove away. "What? Bust someone's kneecaps?"

"Yeah, exactly."

At the delighted tone of his peer, he turned to face Akabayashi. The older man was smiling at him, but as usual, it wasn't free of its cunning nature. He scoffed at the self-satisfied expression on the face, feeling a familiar annoyance tightening his airways.

"You don't need me to go ruin someone's day. You have plenty of chances to do so anyway. Also, I'm sure Shu would love it if you took him out for a walk again some time."

"Ah, but I enjoy watching you do it, Haruya. Sometimes, I forget how ruthless you can be."

He squinted at the brunette. There was a faint glimmer reflecting in the dark eyes.

"But it seems I'm not the only one who needs to be reminded of it."

"Is this about Izaya? Are you implying I don't know how to control my Omega?"

Unshaken by the displeased tone of the younger Alpha, Akabayashi continued.

"But that's the problem, isn't it? He's not really your Omega. You just mounted him while he was in heat, but you never managed to form an actual bond. You remember, I was there when he broke down. That's quite the opposite of a healthy bond."

Akabayashi paused and watched as his words sunk in, Shiki's features settling in a deep frown.

"He's refusing you. Does he know his attempts will be in vain? That he's basically turning into a time bomb that will eventually self-destruct?"

The brunette clicked his tongue at the last remark. "You're acting like this is going to be the end of him."

"Well," the executive began to muse, "I think that Mr. Orihara is too clever to miss out on the harm he is doing to himself. But… I also believe he is in too deep to actually realize the extent of the harm he has already done."

Through the colored glass of his shades, he regarded Shiki with a sharp look.

"You wouldn't have allowed an execution like this if it wasn't personal."

"It's nothing personal," the brunette was quick to shoot back, too quick. There was a shadow flickering over Akabayashi's face, but it was gone before he could make anything of it. An exasperated sigh left his lungs, the staged nature of it obvious to Shiki. The sound of a cane being tapped onto padded ground was heard in the car.

"I wonder, I wonder," Akabayashi mumbled without looking at the younger Alpha.

He didn't have to look at Shiki to realize the disdain the man held for him.

 **oOoOo**

They were empty. Izaya shook the little flask in his hand, but it refused to refill with the needed pheromones by itself. An angry curse wrenched free from his throat, and he tossed the item away, a sharp sound echoing through the room as it bounced off the wooden floor. Izaya leaned his head against the cool surface of the wardrobe, where he stored the pheromones that Shinra gave him. The image of the underground doctor appeared before his eyes. Pearly white teeth, a smile that bordered on clinically insane, and the reminder to come pick up his product if he didn't want to run into trouble. Izaya didn't want to run into trouble, and yet that was exactly what happened. His fist found the wardrobe and he hissed when a sharp pain shot through his tender wrist. There was a cry building inside his chest, clawing its way to the surface, but Izaya stubbornly swallowed it down. No, he would not lose his head now. He mustn't. What he needed to do was get up, grab a phone and head off to Shinra's and Celty's place to get the pheromones. Only it all seemed an easier plan inside his mind than it would turn out to be, a fact that Izaya was aware of. Everything seemed grey in the dim light of the bedroom. He hadn't opened the shutters all the way, and so most of the day's light stayed blocked out. The cheery sun felt like an intruder, when Izaya so desperately wanted to be by himself, at least for a while. He bit his lip when another sharp wave of desperation surged through him.

"Don't lose your head now," he whispered to himself in a small voice. "Just get up. Get up, go to Shinra and then everything will be alright."

It was simple enough. Everything had already gone wrong, there was no chance this could keep happening. There had to be a bit of luck for him at some point. Izaya nodded as if to confirm the fragment of optimism that managed to blend between the other hazy thoughts.

He climbed back on his feet, leaning his weight against the wardrobe. The bones in his body still felt weirdly heavy. It seemed like his body was determined to turn into another obstacle for him to overcome today. Although that could hardly be considered a new problem. His body refused to adapt to his will all his life. With his nature. With the heat. And now with the strange symptoms that Izaya couldn't quite put a name on. Distant memories rose, of slightly yellowed pages in biology books that came out of another era that still referred to Omegas as the "weakest chain link". Their teacher had reassured them that views had rapidly changed since then. Izaya brushed it off as another empty phrase. Nothing had changed. Omegas were still the basic ground society walked on and made use of. There was still "right" and "wrong" behavior for them.

A good Omega is obedient, submissive, and loyal to their Alpha.

Omegas who fail to do so shall suffer the consequences of their ways.

Betas were mostly free of those unwritten rules, but even they had to suffer under the ruling hand of the Alphas. They were the space in between; not dominant enough to be an Alpha, not submissive enough to be an Omega. Izaya knew of the struggles this strange middle stage could cause; although, Shinra stayed mostly unaffected by it. He had Celty, his makeshift Alpha, and despite her own curious nature, they seemed to be the perfect match. Shinra never once complained about strange heat symptoms, and was able to live a stable and carefree life.

The instability that Izaya chose by working as an informant for this soulless city was his conscious doing. But the instability of his physical being was not, and he detested whenever he had to admit that he would never have full control over himself. Although Alphas too experienced a kind of heat in their younger years, it was nothing in comparison to that of an Omega. It abated at some point, vanishing completely if the Alpha tended to their bodily needs in a careful manner, never to be bothered by it again.

He, on the other hand, would never experience that freedom.

Unless he bound himself to an Alpha.

Life was cruel. Nature was unforgiving.

With slow steps Izaya dragged his form through the apartment, grabbing a phone of which he knew contained all the necessary contacts for the day, slipped on a tapered jacket and headed for the door. As his fingers graced the cold steel of the door knob, a thought pierced his mind.

 _What if it happened again?_

Izaya stilled, his hand hanging in the air.

What if he was attacked again? What if, this time, nobody came to help him?

What if he lost control over himself in the middle of the street?

His airway seemed to constrict. The air he was able to take in was not enough. Izaya felt a tremor beginning to take over his frame.

What if. What if. What if.

His mind was buzzing, overflowing with new miserable scenarios. Always worse. Always depicting him in a situation of great harm. Where was his wit to remind him he was capable of avoiding those events? There was no smart thought to halt the feverous ideas. Izaya hunched over. He couldn't breathe. His eyes stared ahead, glued to the ground beneath him. It was as if he was drifting away.

With a desperation that dug its claws deep into his consciousness, Izaya pulled the jacket closer around his frame, not being able to find any comfort in the light pressure.

It seemed he was condemned to suffer after all.

 **oOoOo**

The car had stopped in front of a training dojo. Akabayashi stood outside, leaning against the car's side, cane tapping against the concrete beneath.

"Stop that," Shiki grouched next to him. He was looking visibly displeased, hands crossed over his chest. He had abandoned his earlier outfit, changed in the cramped spaces of the car, as he shot Akabayashi death glares while the amused redhead had waited outside, watching his clumsy efforts. The bloodied suit was stored away in the trunk next to the bat plastered with bits of blood and bone. Shiki tapped down the front of his fresh shirt and slacks in a memorized manner, suppressing a groan when he realized his pack of cigarettes was also lying in the back of the trunk.

"You're not supposed to smoke when the young miss is in the car," Akabayashi reminded him. When Shiki cocked his head, regarding him with a look of faked surprise, he chuckled. "The young heir wants to keep Akane away from unhealthy sources as long as possible."

"Right. If he wants his daughter to become a responsible adult he should grant her more of his attention, instead of sending us to pick her up," the brunette grumbled, mood visibly tainted.

The other man picked up on that. He took a step forward, slightly leaning into Shiki's space who presented him with a concerned sideways glance.

"What are you doing?"

"Trying to figure you out," Akabayashi mumbled. He didn't seem to find his answer questionable at all.

Shiki, on the other hand, couldn't be more bothered by his peer's odd behavior.

"Stop that, Mizuki. You are acting weird."

"Me?" Akabayashi laughed. "You're the strange one here. First, you beat me up in your apartment. Then, you waltz into that rival gang's warehouse. Then you kill a man. And _then_ you criticize the young heir's methods."

Shiki finally moved his eyes, staring at the redhead standing before him.

"Mizuki," he slowly began, "you literally stepped on my dick. That's why I beat you up. So who's the odd one here?"

"I was trying to make a point there. It's not my fault you took it the wrong way."

"Your shoe was right on it! What is there to misunderstand?"

Before their bickering was able to break into a real fight, the glass doors to the dojo swung open. Happily jumping down the stairs, Akane came running towards the two familiar figures. Akabayashi's frown was replaced by a bright smile as soon as the small girl was in sight. Shiki settled for a slightly less concerning frown.

"Uncle Mizuki! Uncle Haruya!" the young girl cheered. She came to a halt in front of them, instantly reaching for the red head's hand. Swaying back and forth on her feet, she pulled at the man's arm. "I learned so much today! My teacher said I'm doing really good. Can I show you what I learned today?"

Akabayashi reached out, patting the excited girl's soft, dark hair.

"I'll be delighted to see that, Akane. But first, we should bring you home."

The girl nodded, the long bangs falling in her eyes swinging with the movement. Shiki watched the interaction, observing the lively form of the young miss. She got bigger every day. Just as he was about to move away from the car, Akane let go of the executive's hand, falling with her full weight against Shiki's form. He groaned when her head hit him in the stomach. It didn't hurt by any stretch of the imagination, but the candid gesture of affection caught him by surprise. Akane wrapped her arms around the slim man, staring up at him with round eyes.

"Why do you look so sad, uncle Haruya?" she asked, voice slightly muffled by the fabric of Shiki's shirt. For a second, the frown on the man's face deepened, before he settled for a forced smile.

"Don't worry, Akane, I'm not sad at all. But, you know, Mizuki here teased me just before you got out. He was very mean to me."

"Whaaat?" Akane peeped. She whipped around to the taller man in false anger. "That's not very nice, uncle!"

Akabayashi lifted his hands as if in surrender. The smile on his face tinged with an apologetic expression.

"Ah, I'm sorry, Akane. You are absolutely right. But sometimes, you see, you just try to help people and they might think of it as a piece of meanness. Some people are just silly like that."

His eyes wandered back up to Shiki, who mouthed a silent insult in his direction. Akabayashi chuckled, not letting the gesture pass him so easily.

"Sorry, Haruya, what was that you said?"

Shiki squinted his eyes. A pair of hands landed on Akane's ears, blocking the sound as the girl reached for them in surprise.

"I said 'fuck off', Mizuki," he scoffed.

Akane pulled at the fingers, managing to drag them off her ears. She looked up, eyes switching between the two men who stared each other down, mixed expressions on their faces.

"What did you say? What did you say, uncle Haruya?"

"Nothing that is meant for little girl ears," he muttered, ruffling the dark hair. Akane tried to catch the hand atop her head, giggling when Shiki kept pulling it back just before she was able to reach it.

Quietly, Akabayashi watched the scene displaying before him. When he was sure the brunette didn't pay any attention to him, a small smile pulled at his lips.

 **oOoOo**

They dropped Akane off at her home. Akabayashi looked outside the window, waving the girl and her mother goodbye as the car drove off. Next to him, Shiki fell silent again. The bit of warm atmosphere the presence of the girl had created was gone the moment she left the car. Both men were back to heavy silence.

"She didn't even mention the bruises," the redhead mused. "I don't think she will be fooled anymore."

When Shiki didn't reply, he simply continued.

"I know that you don't want me involved in your personal business," Akabayashi voiced. "But you know as well as I do that's not going to happen."

"Then let me ask you instead: why does it concern you?"

Shiki wasn't looking at him. His form seemed weirdly flat against the dark leather, as if all strength had left him in one day. There was no pity for the man, Akabayashi having realized that there were ways the executive could have avoided the situation he'd gotten himself wrapped up in. That was why he refused to let the Alpha's obvious animosity affect him in any way.

If anything, it amused him how Shiki tried to block him out. Like a child playing pretend, who thought that things would just vanish if they closed their eyes to them.

Akabayashi had no plan on vanishing.

He mused over his next words, before he spoke up.

"It doesn't concern me. I just find it interesting to watch."

At this, Shiki's head whipped around to him. There was obvious fury in his dark eyes and Akabayashi smiled against the sudden rage he was faced with. The brunette's hands curled into tight fists. He could almost feel the blunt nails digging painfully into the skin himself. The redhead was well aware that he was on thin ice, having now witnessed how violent the other Alpha could be when he snapped. But that was also what made the whole thing so incredibly joyful to Akabayashi. He had no intention of making things pleasant for the younger man. There was no wish to make it worse either, but he had always been a man of opportunities. And this one, this chance of having Shiki on edge like a worm dangling from a hook, was worth the risk of painful revenge.

"Did I hit a spot there?" he purred.

Shiki looked just about ready to punch him again, but the other Alpha knew he wouldn't. The day's events brought him a part of his control back, a bit of serenity, and so the executive was able to refrain from bold moves.

What a shame.

It was almost as if the pale mark on Akabayashi's throat was prickling.

Shiki held his curious gaze for a moment, before huffing, turning away from him again.

"You're strange," he remarked simply. "Don't you have better things to do?"

"I don't have any better _hobby_ , no," the redhead admitted in staged sigh.

Again, there was a tension running through the brunette's body, his shoulders lifting in a frustrated gesture. Akabayashi watched him, took in the smallest signs of distress in the other man, and remembered them for another time.

As they pulled up to Awakusu's gallery, the red head remained in his seat.

"I have to meet someone, but I shall join you later. In the meantime, why don't you tell Shu of our little adventure from today?" he announced in one breath, noticing the suspicion flickering over Shiki's features.

The younger man left the issue without comment, simply pushed the car's door shut with a bit too much force. Akabayashi watched and waited until the other man had vanished inside the large building.

"To Doctor Kishitani's address, please," he instructed the driver.

As the car begin its trip, Akabayashi leaned back in his seat. If Shiki refused to let him in on what was happening with their informant, he would have to turn to other sources. Knowing of the close bond between the Omega and the underground doctor, he had decided it would be his best bet. As the car glided along through the city's traffic, the Alpha tried to imagine the scene that could be happening inside the Awakusu gallery right now. He was convinced Aozaki would be delighted about their brash move on the rival gang. After all, the large man had a taste for violence. Something they all had in common. Akabayashi had always wondered about the youngest executive's preference for dealing with things in a, well, slightly less messy way. But that was only until he realized Shiki did it for the sake of convenience and his belief that knowledge was in fact power.

He had gained good information on the rival gang, and then crushed them under his heel.

All that composed behavior, all those manners and gestures of respect – it was just a show. A play the Alpha had perfected over the years and now fed on the mistakes people dared to do in his, seemingly less threatening, presence.

He wondered if Izaya had made the same mistake.

The clouds above were heavy with rain as Akabayashi stepped out of the car. He had been at the doctor's apartment a few times. The young medic was a respectful host and a trusted associate of the Awakusu group, and Shiki had even mentioned he owned a key to the man's apartment at one point, just for emergencies.

Akabayashi wasn't as closely affiliated with the doctor, and so he rang the doorbell, waiting for hurried steps and a slightly breathless Shinra to yank the door open.

"Celty, darling, are you back already? Oh, I missed you so, my sweet pumpkin flower-!" he broke off when his eyes landed on the tall executive.

Akabayashi offered him an apologetic smile.

"Sorry to disappoint you, doctor, but it's just me," he rumbled, watching the concern settle in the young man's features. "May I come in? It won't be long, I promise."

"Ah, well, of course, Mr. Akabayashi. Of course, come in."

Shinra's voice was a bit quieter as he stepped aside to let the Alpha pass him. He immediately smelled the stench of ash on the man's clothes, but remained silent about it. If he had learned one thing while working with the Awakusu executives, it was that it was better not to ask. The answer might be unnecessarily uncomfortable.

"How may I help you?" he asked instead, closing the door behind them.

Despite his overly calm and charming nature, Akabayashi had a constant vibe of menace surrounding him. It was a different feeling than what Shinra caught from the other executives. While he knew Shiki well enough to trust him to behave in a certain way, his peer seemed like the kind of man who could be cracking a cheesy joke in one moment, only to step on someone's neck in the next.

Overall, Shinra did not enjoy his presence.

"I should be honest with you, doctor," Akabayashi began, standing in the living room and taking in the cozy nature, "this is about a personal issue of mine. So, I hope to count on your discretion? Yes? Perfect. I have recently learned of Mr. Orihara's… disadvantageous nature."

At this, his remaining eye slowly settled back on Shinra. He watched the smaller form go rigid.

"He's an Omega, did you know?" the executive drawled. It wasn't an actual question, he had figured that Izaya might be covering up with illegal Alpha pheromones and so the underground doctor would be the obvious source.

Still, he watched Shinra's reaction. The Beta seemed to melt under his gaze. That was, before a bitter smile crept onto the young face.

"So he finally became careless," he mumbled, voice low with heavy realization. "I guess it was bound to happen at some point. Is he still alive? I imagine the Awakusu group wasn't very pleased with this."

"Oh, it's only me and Mr. Shiki who know of the issue. Rest assured, we have no intention of harming the Omega. In fact, the relationship between Mr. Orihara and my peer might be a bit more – how do I put this? – louche."

For a moment, Shinra stared at the older man, confusion apparent in his face. Then, realization sank in.

"Oh," he breathed quietly. "Well, that is… I didn't expect that to happen."

"I am just a bit disappointed, Doctor Kishitani. I believed you to be loyal enough to the Awakusu group to not keep such a secret to yourself."

As he spoke, Akabayashi walked forward to the smaller man. A stark flinch went through the Beta as he felt the executive step into his personal space.

First Shizuo. Now Akabayashi. Why couldn't people leave him out of this?

He caught up to the unspoken implications in the Alpha's words. But it wasn't like Shinra had never been in a dicey situation before. He could talk his way out of this. He had to.

"I am sorry, Mr. Akabayashi. I understand your concern, but, you see, I treated Mr. Orihara not as a friend but as a patient. Despite my connections to your group and my work for it, I am, as a doctor, obliged not to share my patient's information with you. Every member of the Awakusu organization experiences the same treatment. That is what guarantees my qualities as a medic. Would you really accept a doctor into your circles who freely spills his patients' secrets? Please, Mr. Akabayashi, understand that I take my oath very seriously, despite my work conditions. I hope you can appreciate my efforts, even with the latest events regarding Mr. Orihara."

The Alpha had listened to Shinra's speech, a small smile having begun to form around his lips as the young man spoke.

It had been entertaining enough for Akabayashi to allow the shaky explanation.

"I understand, doctor. You simply have the best intentions for your patients. That is very honorable of you."

He said so with an amused tone, watching a slight frown darkening Shinra's expression. The Beta knew he simply humored him. But it was still better than having his head torn off right then and there.

"So, do you also know of the incident that occurred a few days ago? It had Mr. Orihara ending up in a very disadvantageous state and I am concerned with his health, you see. After all, he is Mr. Shiki's trusted informant."

Shinra's eyes widened in surprise.

Despite Akabayashi already being in his personal space, he leaned forward, voice hushed as if somebody could be eavesdropping on them.

"Mr. Heiwajima was here and he mentioned something similar. What happened there? Is Izaya okay?"

Akabayashi imitated his gesture, leaning in as well.

"I don't know," the yakuza smiled.

A huff left Shinra, which he quickly covered up with a small excuse. The concern for his high school friend had him act careless in the gangster's presence, and he couldn't allow himself to be dragged into a mess. If not for his, then for Celty's sake.

"So, Mr. Heiwajima was here, hm?" Akabayashi mused. The older man picked up on the Beta's behavior with a bit of disappointment. He had expected the doctor to be less submissive. It was almost a shame that he behaved so ordinary. Different than Izaya, who had surprised Akabayashi. He had done his best to play his original delight about the situation down in front of the Omega and his peer, but Akabayashi did feel excited about all of this.

In his own composed manner, he was utterly thrilled.

"Ah, yes. He had run into Mr. Orihara. I figure during the incident you mentioned, as he said something similar. He was very flustered. Oh, he also gave me Izaya's phone, to hold on to it for him."

"Is that so?" Akabayashi drawled. "By pleasant coincidence, I was actually planning on granting Mr. Orihara a visit tonight. How about you hand me the phone, and I bring it to him?"

A slender hand was already reaching out, fingers opened and waiting for the small object to be placed in them. Shinra looked at the hand, much like a mouse entrapped by a snake's gaze. Mechanically, he reached into his pocket, extracting the cellphone and carefully placing it inside the open palm. He felt it was a bad idea, and he didn't trust the casual words of the Alpha, but there was nothing he could do about it. With all the bits of his heart not consumed by the love for Celty, he hoped that his high school friend would be alright, and knew how to handle himself.

"Thank you," Akabayashi purred, long fingers closing around the small item. "I enjoyed your presence today, Doctor Kishitani. We shall see each other soon."

Akabayashi turned to leave, cane steadily tapping against the hard ground beneath.

"Please."

His hand reaching for the door halted mid air. Behind him, Shinra clawed together all his courage. With his eyes glued to the yakuza's back, he continued.

"Be kind to him. Izaya might be twisted, but it's not easy for him. He just tries to survive, like all of us."

The words are followed by silence, but he didn't expect the older man to react to his heartfelt plea. Instead, Akabayashi moved forward, carefully closing the door behind him.

He considered telling the young Beta that he had no cruel intentions with his friend. But, where was the fun in extracting all the tension right away? He decided to keep the man on his toes for a while, until he was able to figure out this bizarre situation for himself and feel satisfied with his own findings.

Until then, Shinra could suffer just a bit more.

 **oOoOo**

Time flew. Or it stood completely still. Izaya had no sense of it anymore. He was still crouched in front of the door, arms wrapped around himself to contain the tremor shaking him. The breath that left his lungs was shallow, too fast. Lightly, he rocked back and forth, without being aware of the motion. Izaya stared ahead into the even surface of the apartment's door. The sun had given up her spot in the sky, dusk had announced itself. The spaces around Izaya were engulfed by darkness, with the smallest hint of light slipping from under the door. The young man hadn't even realized, too distracted by the steadily turning carousel inside his head, whirling faster and faster. Everything felt numb and cold. He couldn't feel the fingers clutching his slim frame, the ache of his thighs as the position cut off their circulation.

It was completely silent, save for the small wheezes leaving his mouth from time to time.

Izaya shuddered. His eyes stung, but no tears welled up. There was a stark pressure inside of him, too massive as that he could gain relief from letting the tears spill now.

He couldn't do anything.

When the doorbell rang through the quiet spaces, disrupting the dark silence, Izaya flinched.

He didn't hear the approaching steps, didn't realize a shadow had spread from under the door.

The doorbell rang again, seeming more urgent than the first time.

A knock against wooden texture.

"Izaya," a voice pressed through the door between them. "Open up. I can hear you. Open the door, Izaya."

The movement was automatic, mechanical. Izaya rose, almost tumbling forward as the blood rushed back into his extremities. With numb fingers he reached for the doorknob, turning it slowly.

He moved by plain reflex only. The voice on the other side hadn't even rung any memory in him. He just reacted.

As the door swung open, Akabayashi looked at him with an easy expression. It lost all of its nonchalance as he realized the Omega's state.

"Izaya."

The young man didn't react. It took him several moments before a spark inside his brain rouse up, reminding him that there was a human being before him, and he had to interact. Lazily, his eyes wandered over the tall frame of the executive. Dully, letters appeared before his inner eye, naming the stranger.

"Mr. Akabayashi," he mumbled, and, as his eyes glided over to the stars framing the figure, "good evening."

It was only when a hand gently pushed him back into the apartment that Izaya stepped aside. He almost tripped over his own feet in the process, and the hand around his upper arm tightened reflexively. Akabayashi didn't ask him what was happening to him. The realization of the Omega's state had sunken in the moment he saw the glassy eyes, the pale in his face and the slight tremble in his arms. The skin under his fingertips felt eerily cold. He leaned down to inspect the raven's eyes, realizing with relief that they contracted as Izaya watched him.

"Izaya," he began, lightly squeezing the thin arms.

The moment he tightened his grip, Izaya's breath hitched. Hiccups fell from his lips, with violent gasps for air in between. Akabayashi felt the slim frame begin to shake under his hands.

"C-can't breathe," the raven wheezed. His eyes stared ahead, as if the other man wasn't even there. "I can't-"

Akabayashi didn't take his hand off him, but began to carefully pull him from his spot and over to the large windows. Beneath them, the city was alive with hundreds of people passing them, unaware of the scene above them. He placed the wordless form of Izaya next to the wide windows, and stood to search for a handle. Dimly, the thought crossed him that he really didn't want to be the person who had to keep those windows clean. Eventually, he was able to open a smaller window to the side, but it was enough to have a fresh breeze crawling inside the apartment. He shivered against the cold brushing over his collar, swallowing against the smallest strain he still suffered from Shiki's violent grip around his throat. The cane leaned against the desk behind him. By the time he returned to Izaya, the Omega was kneeling on the floor, his form hunched over.

When Akabayashi gingerly placed a hand on his shoulder, Izaya flinched, but without looking up. He was kneading his fingers inside his lap. The Alpha could see how the skin had already reddened from the rough treatment.

Gently, he glided down in front of the raven.

"Izaya," Akabayashi began, lowly. When the Omega refused to grant him attention, he cocked his head. "Look at me."

The young man didn't react, so the Alpha reached out. With gentle hands he lifted his face, feeling the tremble going through the lean frame. Dreary eyes that seemed to go right through him met his own. Beneath the thin fabric of Izaya's shirt his chest was heaving.

"Breathe with me," Akabayashi instructed him, not waiting for a reply that wouldn't come anyway. He evened out his own breathing, deeply inhaling, before slowly exhaling. His own gaze never left that of Izaya. Outside the windows, the city continued its own rhythm. Relieved, he realized the young man's hiccups had subsided, replaced by shaky, yet deeper breaths. Izaya stared at him, blinking against the rising blur in his vision. When something wet crawled down his cheek, he tried to wipe it away, but his arms wouldn't obey him yet.

"That's alright," the older man rumbled. "You're doing very well, Izaya."

Neither of them could say how long they stayed like that. The raven was trying to keep his focus on the man before him, imitating the calm breathing, until he felt a hollow fatigue settle in his bones. It was different to the feeling of earlier; it wasn't an uncomfortable weight, but instead it made him feel lighter than before. The next breath that left his lips came easy and Izaya blinked against the heaviness of his eye lids.

"Very good," Akabayashi murmured. He rubbed a thumb over the young man's cheek, wiping away some of the salty liquid. "That's a good boy. Do you feel better, Izaya?"

Slowly, the Omega nodded. Even his head felt lighter, while at the same time the motion demanded a lot of his energy.

"Good, that's great. Come on, get up. You should lie down a bit. Can you show me your bedroom?"

He spoke simply, wary of the dull eyes the Omega gave him. But Izaya began to move, slouching toward the stairs leading into the upper part of the spacious apartment. Akabayashi didn't get to take in the whole size of it, focused on steadying the young man's slightly wobbly steps. They stepped into the dark bedroom, and neither of them bothered to turn on the light. The form of the Omega was guided towards the empty bed, sheets still crumbled up from his earlier slumber. When Akabayashi let go of his shoulders, he only needed the lightest push before he slumped back and into the soft cushions.

As if through a thick curtain he felt hands roll him onto his side, before a warm fabric was wrapped around his shoulders. The smell of the Alpha filled his nose, and Izaya reached out to tangle his fingers in the jacket. His eyes had fallen shut at this point. Gladly, he allowed the approaching slumber, his heavy bones finally laying down to rest.


	8. Chapter 8

**Trigger warnings for this chapter: mentions of sexual assault. / This chapter contains: rimming. collaring.**

* * *

"Hey."

Shizuo winced, pulled out of his own thoughts and back to the present situation. Next to him, Tom gave him a long look. There was the pinch of guilt when Shizuo realized the Beta had been talking to him the whole time.

"I'm sorry, Tom," he babbled quietly. "What were you saying?"

Instead of scolding him, the older man chuckled. The sushi plate before him was already half empty, while Shizuo's stayed mostly untouched.

"I asked what's been going through your head?" Tom repeated through a mouthful of maguro.

At his employer's question, Shizuo's brows creased in a frown. He had been trying to sort out his own thoughts for the past days, but never managed to put them into a proper order. Instead, various ideas and images had been circling inside his mind, some more prominent than the others. And they all revolved around the same issue.

Orihara Izaya.

"Sorry," Shizuo muttered. A word he had made use of a lot in his life. "I've not been a good employee lately."

In his lap, his fists clenched. The man next to him picked up on the subtle gesture. A warm hand landed on Shizuo's shoulder, startling him.

"Don't worry about that," Tom offered. "Everybody has a down time now and then. It happens. Don't beat yourself up over it."

The words slowly sank in and settled as a grounding weight inside Shizuo's chest. He managed a tentative smile.

"Thank you, Tom. You always put up with my issues. I know it's not easy –"

With a quick gesture, the Beta waved him off. "Ah, forget about that, Shizuo! Everything is alright. Trust me. I know things can be tough for you, so whenever you walk off I figure you have a good reason to. Besides, it really wasn't that often. But, you know, whatever is on your mind, you can share that with me."

The blonde looked up and was met with the rocksteady smile of his middle school friend. It didn't matter how moody Shizuo was, Tom always made up for it with his own sanguine nature. They balanced each other out. Never at one point had their different natures led to any clashes. Instead, they kept each other's balance in a seemingly perfect symbiosis. Tom, as a Beta, was of a more peaceful nature, and together with his harmless appearance had managed to save the younger man from many possible conflicts. If they ended up in a risky situation after all, Shizuo, as the Alpha that he was, would step forward, not allowing his pack - as small as it was - to be harmed. Whenever Varona accompanied them, it added another Alpha to the group. Due to Shizuo's own wish for peace and stability, he didn't mind the presence of other Alphas. This whole system of them being above Betas and Omegas had just never really made any sense to Shizuo. But whenever he voiced his objection, somebody would attempt to shoot him down, trying to keep his dissident thoughts from infecting other Alphas. And so, Shizuo had learned to keep those ideas to himself and that it was best to stay out of the whole issue.

It fueled too many conflicts, and that was not what the young man wanted. All he wanted was his peace. Arguing with strangers about other stranger's lives wasn't helping the task, and so Shizuo simply ignored the issues that Alphas had with Betas, and Betas with Omegas, and so on and so on.

It didn't make any sense anyway.

"Well, shall we get going then? Huh, Shizuo, you haven't even eaten anything."

Just as Tom said so, the broad form of Simon appeared from behind the counter. The large Russian man smiled, his white teeth flashing in the bright light of the restaurant.

"Shizuo," he began, his voice cheerful, booming through the relatively quiet spaces, "a lean stomach makes a brain that is hungry. Hungry for sushi! You must eat. It's good for you."

"That's not how the saying goes," Tom tried sheepishly, but the Russian was already busying himself with preparing a doggie bag for the silent blonde. With a mumbled thanks, Shizuo accepted the concerned man's gesture. They made their way out of the small restaurant, Simon waving them goodbye and reminding them of all the amazing traits of sushi.

It was a chilly day outside, the clouds above them heavy with the promise of rain. But even if it cleared up by night, the city's bright lights forbid them from watching the stars hanging above. Shizuo craned his neck, but was only able to make out the grey mass acting for a sky. As someone who had never been out of Tokyo, he had never witnessed a sky full of stars only seeing it in movies and on pictures. But even then it had filled him with a calm, the thought of vast nothingness weirdly soothing.

"Alright, let's see what's on the agenda today," Tom hummed next to him. He pulled a little notepad from his jacket, flipping through the white pages for a moment. "Hmm, that's still a lot to do. Let's get going then, Shizuo. Hello, Shizuo?"

The blonde was still staring upward, and it was only when the smaller man tugged at his shirt that he noticed. With a small noise, he turned his attention back to his employer, wincing when he realized he had spaced out again.

Before he could say anything, Tom lifted a hand.

"Don't say it," he voiced sternly. "For tonight, you are not allowed to say sorry anymore. Got it?"

A smile tugged at his lips, and Shizuo realized the warm glint in the man's brown eyes.

"Ah, of course, Tom," the Alpha mumbled quietly. Involuntarily, the corners of his own mouth began to twitch. "Sorry."

"Shizuo!"

"Oh no! I'm so–"

"You're doing it again."

"This is really hard."

 **oOoOo**

There was the light tap of bare feet on cold ground, and Akabayashi turned around. He was met with the sight of Izaya, still wrapped inside the executive's jacket, watching him from the stairs.

For a moment, both men just stared at each other. Then Akabayashi's lips pulled into a small smile.

"Good morning," he greeted the silent Omega.

Izaya's hair was tousled, standing in odd directions, and his eyes were still glassy from the long sleep. With a slow motion, the young man rubbed the tiredness out of them.

"Have you been here all night?" he croaked.

The redhead looked around, as if he had to remember where he was. When he faced Izaya again the smile was still plastered to his lips.

"Yes," he simply replied.

"Haven't you slept at all?"

"I'm rather nocturnal anyway."

All these men who refused sleep for Izaya's sake. It was puzzling. He didn't ask any of them to make any sacrifices. Especially not for him. With slow steps, he began to climb down the stairs. He could feel Akabayashi's eyes on him the whole time, but he chose to leave the Alpha be. Wordlessly, Izaya sank down on the couch next to him with enough space between them so he could drag up his knees. It wasn't cold in the apartment, but the jacket stayed wrapped around slim shoulders. With his head leaned against the backrest of the couch, Izaya looked over to the quiet man. The usual shades were missing, cozily seated on the coffee table before them.

"How do you feel?"

The Omega shrugged.

"Better, I guess. Can't quite remember what happened yesterday, actually. We didn't… do anything, right?"

Akabayashi cocked his head, as if he could read the young man better that way. After a brief pause, he chuckled.

"No, I didn't mount you, if that's what you're trying to say."

"Good, good," Izaya mumbled. He chewed on his lips, draining the last bit of sleepy numbness from them. It took him a moment, before he was able to muster up the next words. "Why not? You could have. It's not like I could have done anything about it."

"Why, Izaya, do you really take me for a man like that?" The Alpha was obviously puzzled by his words, a deep frown creeping onto the usually relaxed face of the executive. "Or is your perception of Alphas just a bit skewed, possibly?"

"Skewed," Izaya spat out bitterly. "Four days ago I was almost raped by a group of Alphas. It might be your perception that is skewed, Mr. Akabayashi. But I don't blame you. Alphas are raised to be ignorant all their life."

A heavy silence fell on them, in which Izaya tried not to choke on the hateful words. He held Akabayashi's hard look for a moment, before he cast his eyes away.

"Like I said, I don't blame you," he added quietly.

But the redhead didn't seem bothered by his words. In fact, he could see the truth behind them. That wasn't something he needed to let the Omega know, though.

"Quite headstrong, hm?" he hummed. "I begin to understand what Haruya sees in you."

At the mention of the absent Alpha, Izaya snorted.

"Trust me, there is nothing to see in me. And he wouldn't anyway."

The bitterness was dripping from each word, something Akabayashi didn't miss out on. With a sigh, he leaned back into the couch, arms draped onto the backrest to both sides. While Izaya's form stayed small, compressed, the redhead felt relaxed enough to open up. If he had done this in front of another Alpha, it surely would have earned him a disapproving look. But in this apartment, he had only the acrid Omega as company.

"Not only headstrong, but also bitter," he said, turning in time to see the scowl darkening Izaya's eyes. "But I don't blame you."

The last words were spoken in mock of the Omega's own, but Akabayashi's tone seemed honest enough.

"Is that so? What would you know about being an Omega? What it means to be like this?"

"Well," the yakuza began slowly. His eyes wandered away from Izaya's face, as if in deep thought. "Obviously I don't know what it's like, and I never will. But I was there yesterday, and I saw you."

Involuntarily, Izaya shuddered. His head was filled with blurry memories that roughly outlined the events of the previous night. The realization that Akabayashi knew more than him about what happened had his gut turning uncomfortably. Again, it felt like the ground was slowly pulled away from under his feet. He recognized it as vulnerability. Something Izaya preferred to avoid, having done so all his life by turning people down and away from them in time. But things were different now. His usual strategy had borne no fruit, and instead the young man was forced to face things head on this time.

His tries were clumsy at best.

"It feels like I'm losing myself," Izaya mumbled into the skin of his knees. He didn't know why he opened up to Akabayashi of all people. Maybe because the man had refrained from taking advantage of his dire state. He would be the first to do so, after all.

"What do you plan on doing about it?"

"I don't know," the Omega muttered, drawing a slim hand through the messy strands of his hair.

As he did so, Akabayashi noticed the faint bruises around his wrist. He didn't have to ask who created them. He simply knew. "Have you ever felt like fading away? Like you are slowly bleeding out into your surroundings? But there is no gaping wound you could stitch together. You just slowly disappear."

The Alpha wasn't sure the young man was actually talking to him. Izaya's eyes seemed to go into the distance, like he was just forming thoughts that had been plaguing him for a long time. Then he suddenly snapped back to the present, lifting his head to stare at Akabayashi.

"How did you know what to do yesterday?"

The older man puffed up his cheeks, trying to think of an answer. He weighed his head a little, before settling for the truth.

"There was a time when things were a bit more difficult for me. I found myself in a similar situation as you. Someone close to me, she… well, she left me, rather unexpectedly. There was nothing I could do about it beyond accepting it. But that wasn't as easy as I tried to convince myself it was. There were moments when I lost control over myself. But, I had someone who would help me through it, even though he claims to hate my guts. So, I know what it feels like. You know how they say painful experiences make you compassionate? That's not something I would agree with. But it does give you some kind of insight."

He looked back at Izaya, and caught the strange tenderness in the Omega's face. Quickly, he laughed the tension threatening to take a hold of him off.

"But, you know, don't think of me as a good guy now."

"Is that why you are so nice to me?" Izaya asked, ignoring the older man's attempt of playing things off.

Akabayashi stilled.

"Ah, am I being nice, though?" he began. A familiar, playful smile started to tug at his lips. "Maybe I'm doing this just for my own sake? You really shouldn't put your trust into me, Izaya. In the end, I might turn out to be the worst of them all."

The man laughed, amused by his own words. The last remnants of a chuckle were still shaking his shoulders, when he looked up and only saw strands of black. In the next moment, his breath was taken away by soft lips pressing onto his. Akabayashi hesitated, one hand hovering over the thin frame of the Omega. When Izaya pulled back, he stared into crimson eyes, pupils that were slightly dilated, despite the daylight falling in through the wide windows.

"You don't want this," Akabayashi mumbled into the silence between them.

It earned him a defiant huff from the other man. "Don't tell me what to do."

Ignoring the sound of protest, Izaya climbed into his lap, straddling the surprised man. He pressed both hands against the broad chest beneath, feeling the Alpha's steady heartbeat under his fingertips. It hadn't even sped up yet, and Izaya felt challenged. He leaned in again, finding the redhead's mouth, swallowing the words that were supposed to teach him better; trying to keep him from making a mistake. Until now, he had only kissed Shiki, the man being all hard edges and the bitter taste of nicotine. Akabayashi tasted different. Almost desperately, Izaya licked at the lips that were so much softer than the brunette's. He grinded his hips into the Alpha, resulting in him finally opening his mouth. As Izaya dove in, claiming as much of the Alpha as he could, warm hands landed on his hips. They wandered all over his sides, his thighs, squeezing and stroking. Despite the urgency the younger man tried to infect him with, Akabayashi's movements were smooth, without any rush. Izaya felt hot anger bubbling up inside his chest when the Alpha's touches stayed soft.

He didn't want soft. He didn't want the man to touch him like something that could break apart under his hands.

With a desperate whine, Izaya rolled his hips into the older man, pressing flat against his chest while trying to bruise the pliant lips. It was like trying to move a rock. Senseless and in vain.

It made Izaya furious.

Why did he have to be so kind? Why did he have to be so gentle? Izaya deserved none of it, and yet he craved it; wanted to destroy all that tenderness as much as he wanted to indulge in it. But breaking things was easier, so much easier.

Akabayashi, though, refused to be broken.

The raven played with the thought of just biting down on the executive's soft lips, just as the roaming hands found his behind. A warm palm crawled down his skin, as the Alpha slid under the fabric of his clothes. Izaya moaned when a finger pressed against his entrance, the wetness there clinging to his skin.

Akabayashi hummed as if in approval. But then he pulled back, his free hand lightly wrapping around the Omega's throat, halting him.

"Last chance," he said.

For a brief moment, Izaya stared at him. His face was unreadable, until a toothy smiled spread the already puffy lips.

"No, thank you." And with that he dove back in, capturing the Alpha's mouth again. Beneath him, Akabayashi growled, and it's the sound Izaya had been waiting for. The hands turned rougher now, the finger teasing him retreating so the taller man could grab his hips, one hand still loosely wrapped around the Omega's throat. It was a strange sensation, feeling the drag of rough fingers, but in a way it was grounding. Izaya leaned into that hold and felt the man's fingers twitch. Against his lips, a smile tugged at Akabayashi's.

"Have you been collared yet, Izaya?"

The question came suddenly, unprepared. Izaya's eyebrows furrowed in puzzlement.

"I take that as a no. Not exactly surprising for Shiki, that is. He's a young Alpha, there are things he has to learn yet."

Before Izaya can voice a question, the world turned. In one fluid motion, Akabayashi threw his body into the couch, pressing into the smaller male and successfully spreading his legs as he did. The hand around Izaya's throat tightened the slightest bit, but it was enough to send a spark of excitement through the Omega's body. With his chest heaving, lungs begging for the air that had been pressed out of them, he stared up at the Alpha. Akabayashi was grinning, and it wasn't of the usual coy nature.

A shudder ran through him as the older man pressed his hips into him, creating the smallest bit of friction. When Akabayashi reached between to unbuckle his belt, Izaya whined.

"Are you going to fuck me?" he asked, sounding somewhat breathlessly.

The redhead shot him an amused gaze, the Omega's throat being momentarily freed from his hand as Akabayashi pulled the belt's end through the buckle.

"No," he chuckled, adding after a small pause, "you're not my type."

The words didn't exactly hurt, but they still bit at Izaya's pride. He decided to probe further.

"Then what is your type?"

Akabayashi halted, the belt now a complete loop in his hands. He looked up from his work and back at the young man before him. Izaya's hands were resting on his thighs, blunt nails teasingly dragging over the fabric.

"Not you," he responded, much to the dissatisfaction of the Omega. But before Izaya could go into a huff, he lifted the belt and put it around the young man's neck. Carefully, he pulled the end, until the leather brushed against the delicate skin. It didn't restrict his breathing, for that Akabayashi didn't pull it tightly enough. But it was there, a light pressure against his throat, further so when Izaya swallowed against the rough fabric.

"Feels alright?" Akabayashi asked, studying the Omega's features as he spoke. When Izaya nodded quietly, a raspy chuckle fell from his lips. "Good. I promise this will make you feel better. And now, off with those pants."

Izaya didn't even bother to feign indifference. At this point his skin had turned hot, the wetness sticking to his thighs as he slipped out of the clothes as gracefully as he could, while still being wedged between Akabayashi's frame and the couch. When he slipped off his briefs, he saw the large spot his own fluid had left inside of them. Instantly, his cheeks flushed. This part about his nature wasn't foreign to him, but exposing it so openly to a stranger was something entirely different.

The Alpha felt his unease. Akabayashi didn't tease him about it, but neither did he try to shy away the sudden coyness. If he thought about it, it was kind of cute, and so he wordlessly watched the Omega's face redden with a deeper shade.

A bashful Orihara Izaya. That was something he could get used to.

With both legs still hooked over Akabayashi's hips, the young man was completely exposed to the eyes of the Alpha. He could see the broad chest rising and sinking with labored intakes of breath. The older man was drinking in the sight before him; pale thighs spreading just for him, and a hole, already wet and ready to be stuffed. Still, he had no plans of mounting the Omega right then and there.

Instead, Akabayashi pulled back, gliding down onto the floor with the end of the belt tightly wrapped around his hand. As he did so, the loop around Izaya's neck tightened. He watched the nervous swallow of the Omega against the leather, and smiled.

"Put your legs on my shoulders. Yeah, like that. If the collar gets too tight, tap my shoulder. Understood, Izaya? That's a good boy."

He grabbed the Omega's hips from underneath, yanking him closer to the edge of the couch. Izaya hiccupped in surprise, and then gasped when a tongue dragged over his wet hole without any forewarning. A shudder went through his slim frame, the sensation as strange as it was pleasurable. When the tongue's tip circled the rim in a teasingly slow motion, Izaya moaned. He pressed with both hands against the couch, the position having his body bend at an awkward angle. The leather around his throat pulled tighter, trapping the heat of his body underneath. The rough material scraped over his skin, but it wasn't uncomfortable. It made him feel weirdly safe, almost protected. Izaya whined at the next broad drag over his hole. Reflexively, it clenched, eliciting a praising hum from the Alpha between his legs.

"Feels good, doesn't it?" Akabayashi rumbled. Without waiting for an answer from the flustered Omega, he dove back in, sucking on the skin around the rim. It made an obscenely wet sound, and Izaya's arm shot out to grab the man's hair. His fingers tangled in the dark red, torn between pushing and pulling. Akabayashi allowed it, continuing on his task without further ado. The probing tongue pushed against the slight resistance, which earned him a needy whimper. Efforts further fueled by the Omega's response, Akabayashi pressed more intently until Izaya relaxed under his touch, and his tongue slipped in.

The raven bucked, thighs tensing at the feeling of the other man inside of him. A light sweat had broken on his skin by now and if it hadn't been for the makeshift collar around his neck, Izaya might have jumped off the couch right then and there.

"Fuck me," he wailed, unashamed of how loud it sounded in the quiet apartment. "Fucking hell, just…- fuck me already!"

The tongue pulled back, instead, he felt a hot breath ghosting over his skin as Akabayashi snickered.

"Not going to happen," the Alpha murmured darkly. "I told you, Izaya – I'm not nice."

At the teasing words, desperation hit Izaya. That damn yakuza bastard had successfully driven him crazy, only to deny him when he was finally asking for it. No, _begging_ to be fucked by the older man. It was only when the fingers in his hair turned demanding, that Akabayashi batted them away. With a hearty tug, he tightened the belt around the Omega's throat, capturing the young man's attention. Izaya stared at him out of hazy eyes, mouth hanging open to take in shaky breaths.

"But I'm no sadist either," he growled.

The hand that had been holding on to a pale hip now crawled lower and between shaking thighs. With two fingers at once, Akabayashi pushed into the Omega, watching the young face open up in pleasure. He curled his fingers ever so slightly, rubbing against the spongy bundle he found. The fingers scissored, teasing the prostate from both sides. Izaya was so loose by now, it wasn't a difficult task. The Alpha greedily drank in the sight of the desperate raven, lips caught between his teeth to keep the pathetic whimpers from spilling. Akabayashi decided he enjoyed the needy sounds way more, and so he leaned down, warm lips wrapping around the cock nuzzling against Izaya's belly.

Reflexively, he thrust up into the wet heat engulfing his dick. An approving rumble went through the Alpha at this, Izaya being able to feel the vibration of it inside the redhead's mouth. A pitiful sob freed itself from his chest, the sensation being close to overstimulation. When Akabayashi began to suck on the hard flesh, Izaya threw his head back and into the couch, the leather around his neck rubbing almost painfully over the tender skin. Despite his nerves prickling, his body trying to burst out of its own skin, he wanted more of this. It felt so amazing, dancing on the borderline between too much and not enough, and Izaya didn't want it to end.

But he knew he would not last.

When Akabayashi thrust his fingers in at a faster pace, pushing persistently against his prostate, Izaya's back arched. The belt was now pulled tightly, his breathing finally restricted. But he didn't signal the Alpha to stop. Izaya shuddered, watching tiny lights explode before his eyes, blurring his vision.

Akabayashi swallowed him whole, and like that, Izaya broke down.

Mouth opened to a silent scream, he came into the yakuza's mouth. Akabayashi pulled back when he tasted the first bit of semen, but kept thrusting his fingers in and out of the tensing Omega. Izaya clenched around him, and by now the redhead's hand was covered in the young man's wetness. He purred at the sight of the Omega coming undone under his treatment. Izaya came hard, the force of his orgasm squeezing load after load out of his cock. Most landed on his stomach, some on his chest, successfully ruining the shirt he was still wearing.

His orgasm subsided, but Izaya didn't stop shaking. He slumped together, boneless. The belt loosened and he tried to breathe through the little waves of pleasure still running through his body. Gingerly, Akabayashi pulled out of the Omega. In a comforting gesture, he massaged the inside of the raven's thighs, giving the young man enough time to come down from his high.

It took a few long moments, before Izaya was able to crack his eyes open. Mind still clouded from the orgasm, he stared at the Alpha.

"You got…," he began, not being able to finish the sentence. In a vague gesture, he motioned toward Akabayashi's mouth.

The Alpha darted out his tongue, licking up the bit of cum that had managed to cling to his chin. Izaya watched the motion intently, feeling his cock twitch in mild interest. But he was too spent to muster up another hardon. He took a shaky breath, feeling the leather brush against the reddened skin. He wanted to take it off, but his arms wouldn't obey him yet. Wordlessly, Akabayashi reached up to carefully unloop the belt, taking it off the Omega's neck.

Part of Izaya was fascinated by the way the older man was able to read him, realizing the slightest changes in his body language.

Another part felt agitated by the Alpha's talent. Izaya didn't like the fact that he might be an open book to the yakuza.

"So, how're you feeling?" Akabayashi asked from between his legs. With amusement glistening in his eyes he looked over the Omega before him. Izaya was still wearing the executive's jacket and it captured the young man's body heat, flushing the round cheeks further. He flashed the other man a sharp look, but didn't respond yet. Izaya's chest was still slightly heaving, his heart not having calmed its excited pace yet.

Akabayashi smirked, the Omega's expression being enough of an answer.

Carefully, he lifted long legs off his shoulder. He made to stand, ignoring the slight ache in his knees as he did so, and with the back of a hand wiped the raven's wetness from his mouth.

"I have to say, you make quite the picture like this," he mused, eyes wandering over Izaya before him.

The Omega made a sound, looking down to take in the mess he made. At least Akabayashi's jacket had stayed unharmed. The yakuza's smell coming off the fabric seemed to have intensified during their session, and Izaya shuddered as it filled his nostrils. He looked up when Akabayashi groaned quietly. He had his fingers pressed to the prominent scar running over the right eye, slowly rubbing along its outer marks. The motion stopped when the older man caught him staring. As his hands dropped, Izaya followed the movement and so his eyes landed on the visible outline against the Alpha's pants.

"Don't you want to do something about that?" he mumbled sheepishly. When Akabayashi didn't reply, Izaya lifted a foot to lightly press against the erection. The redhead flinched, quickly grabbing the slim ankle as a chuckle rose from his chest.

"No, this is fine. But, don't do that, alright?" he smiled. "Besides, you should worry about getting yourself cleaned up first. There are a few things we must attend to today."

 **oOoOo**

They had just finished their first round, a whole of five names crossed out on Tom's list, when the brunette decided they deserved a break. He left Shizuo standing at an empty corner while he vanished inside a small coffee shop. The blonde used the moment to rummage through his pocket, finding the small pack of cigarettes tucked away inside of it. As he busied himself with lighting the cigarette between his lips, a familiar neigh sounded not far from him. The young man lifted his head to watch the black bike slowly roll towards him.

"Hello Celty," he greeted the silent rider.

With a familiar gesture, the woman whipped a PDA from her sleeve, beginning to type.

[Hello Shizuo. How is work today? ]

"Nothing special, just the usual," the Alpha replied, accentuating his word with a shrug. "Some people have a bad day. Some people have a good day. When we show up they have a bad day anyway."

The woman's slim shoulders shook in a silent chuckle.

[ I see. May I speak to you for a moment, please? ]

"What's wrong, Celty?" Shizuo asked as he stepped closer to the black rider. He sensed that something was bothering the silent figure, having learned to not only read the letters on the PDA but her body language, too. After all, that was their only way of communicating.

[ Earlier, when I came home to Shinra, he seemed badly shaken by something. When I asked he said it was something business related, but he dropped your name. After that, he wouldn't tell me anymore. Do you know what happened? ]

Shizuo's eyes quickly flew over the black letters, his chest tightening with guilt. He hadn't meant to make Shinra uncomfortable with his visit from a few days ago, and the Beta had seemed fine by the time he left. To think that the young man might have been so frightened by Shizuo's strange behavior that he wouldn't even show him pained the Alpha greatly.

And now he made Celty worry on top of it.

It was a connection too easily made, but Shizuo's thoughts spiraled back to his high school nemesis. He had only approached Shinra because of what happened to Izaya, and only because the damn flea had forgotten his cellphone, and of course Shizuo couldn't just ignore it, because he is not one to just let things go, and now he had upset his high school friend and Celty and –

He halted his thoughts right there.

Things were already messy enough.

Shizuo tried his best to explain the past events to the silent rider, watching her hear him out without interrupting once. He valued Celty's patience, but on the other hand, how else could anyone like her endure someone like Shinra?

When he finished, Shizuo still felt the cold claws of guilt scratching at his insides.

[ Don't worry about Shinra. He's tougher than he looks. And it wasn't you who startled him. Apparently, a member of the Awakusu approached him about a similar thing like you had. The guy seemed pretty serious. That is what gave him quite the scare. ]

At the mention of the criminal group, a deep frown settled on Shizuo's face. Not like it wasn't already bad enough that this whole issue seemed to revolve around the damn flea bastard, but now the yakuza was involved as well.

"I shouldn't have gone to Shinra," Shizuo mumbled quietly. "Now I got you two involved in something I don't even understand yet."

With a quick gesture, Celty waved him off. Her fingers flew over the small device.

[ Don't worry about that. He didn't threaten Shinra or anything. Besides, he's associated with the Awakusu, so I don't think they will do anything. I guess he was just trying to figure things out, like you. Don't feel bad, Shizuo, this isn't your fault. But I do wonder now what exactly happened to Izaya. ]

"Yeah, Shinra wouldn't tell me," the blonde muttered, feeling annoyance tug at his nerves. "Something seems to be up with him. Your boyfriend made a big deal out of it. Does he have some kind of condition, or?"

He watched Celty's shoulders tense the slightest bit, but it was enough to not slip past his attentive eyes.

"Celty?"

[ I really shouldn't be talking about Izaya. Anyway, whatever he does, it's his business, right? Let's not worry about him too much. ]

Shizuo's brows furrowed in irritation. Obviously, the female Alpha knew something regarding his high school rival. The fact that everybody made such a big deal out of the damn flea just fueled the rage that slowly built up inside of the blonde.

"If this ends up bringing you or Shinra into a risky situation, then I promise, I will tear that goddamn flea apart–"

[ No, Shizuo, everything is alright! Please, calm down. Put that light pole down, Shizuo! ]

 **oOoOo**

Izaya stepped out of the bathroom, damp air escaping into the hall, just as Akabayashi got off the phone. He threw the Omega a smile, letting the small device glide into his pocket.

"Who were you calling?" the young man asked, rubbing the last droplets of water out of his air with a towel.

"Just my driver. He will be waiting for us outside," Akabayashi replied. He had reclaimed his jacket, although the fabric now looked a bit crumpled, adding to the increasingly tired look of the executive.

Izaya huffed.

"You should have slept while I was in the shower," he mumbled, passing the taller man to enter the bedroom. Izaya flopped down on the bed, reaching over for his boots. But the executive waved his suggestion off.

"We have more important things to do than sleep," the redhead announced and watched quietly as Izaya opened the wide wardrobe to pick a jacket. He had suggested for the smaller man to pick some fresh clothes, along with a jacket that didn't remind him of the evening of his breakdown. Izaya had complied, the past events having put something close to trust into him. So far, the redheaded executive was the only one who had actively tried to help the Omega.

Even if he insinuated that he might not be a good guy after all. Whatever that meant.

They didn't speak as they left the apartment, and they shared no word as they waited for the dark car to pull up to them outside.

It wasn't a heavy silence, nor did it create any awkward tension. Izaya was weirdly glad the Alpha was of a rather quiet nature. These past days, too many words had been spoken in vain, their meanings shallow, their promises empty. Sometimes, it was better not to speak.

Akabayashi opened the car door for him, simply cocking his head when the young man shot him a coy glare. Still, Izaya allowed the gesture and slid into the backseat. As he busied himself with putting on the seat belt, Akabayashi circled the car, entering and sitting down next to him. The inside of the car smelled of expensive leather mixed with the aftershave of the driver in the front. With a bit of concern, Izaya realized how sensitive his sense of smell was at this point. He blamed it on what the Alpha had done to him earlier, how he had promised the collaring would make him feel better. And Izaya did feel better, grounded, less like he was about to melt into his surroundings. But it was such a sudden change, that the side of him which had been trained to be careful, to always be on guard, rung with concern. All of these things seemed to be part of a process Izaya couldn't quite understand yet.

As the car set in motion, he leaned back into the comfortable leather, watching the outside pass by. They had already entered the busy day traffic of Tokyo when he turned back to the quiet executive.

"So where are we going?"

Akabayashi didn't look at him, simply looking ahead through the windscreen over the shoulder of the driver.

"I feel like the dispute you have going on with my dearly respected peer will soon influence our business relationship in a negative way," he began, finally turning to face Izaya. "So we are going to meet Haruya. Ah, I mean Shiki – you don't call him Haruya yet, do you?"

The bright eyes of the Omega widened, before the shadow of betrayal darkened them. Akabayashi watched the process with merriment.

"You tricked me," Izaya hissed. He whipped around, reaching for the door handle. The lock clicked shut before him, and he froze. He looked to the front, where the driver watched him in the rearview mirror. A cold shudder ran down the Omega's back.

"I didn't trick you, Izaya," the man next to him began. "You simply didn't ask earlier."

"That's foul play, and you know it," Izaya pressed through gritted teeth. He yanked at the door handle for good measure, but of course it wouldn't give in to his feeble attempt. With a huff, Izaya sank back into the seat. He refused to look at the man next to him, allowing the childish bitterness to consume him instead.

"Might be," Akabayashi hummed, "but, you know, I never said to play fair. I wonder why people always take me for a good guy, hm. Maybe it's something about my appearance. What do you think, should I change something? Maybe it's the shades."

It was an attempt as much to cheer Izaya up as much as it was meant to mock him. Akabayashi enjoyed teasing the young man, knowing he would react in ways different to other Omegas. That was how the information broker had gathered his attention in the first place. That, and the fact Akabayashi was actually impressed with the way Izaya had managed to fool the whole of Awakusu. Even Shiki, who was known for his sharp mind and attentive senses. Really, it was a small wonder, and in the eyes of the Alpha almost a challenge even. It was things like these that sparked Akabayashi's curiosity, who always had a weak spot for people that refused to follow the system. It might make him as odd as the people who attracted his attention, but Akabayashi wasn't out to impress anyone by following the order. He had his own personal interests, his own goals, his own standards.

Thus, he chose not to snitch on his peer and the Omega. This messy play was amusing him way too much as that he would deny himself the chance of being a part in it.

"I'm surprised at myself for saying this, but trust me, Izaya."

It earned him a snort from the young man. "Yeah, right. Let me think about that for a moment… hmm, absolutely not."

The words were sharp. Akabayashi couldn't blame him. He realized that Izaya would feel betrayed by this, but on the other hand, there wasn't much the Omega wouldn't feel betrayed by. That the whole world was out to get him was the message which had been provided to him all his life. Akabayashi wouldn't change his views now, and he didn't try to.

"It's sink or swim, Izaya. You can't change your nature. Now you have to decide whether you come to terms with yourself or let it overwhelm you."

The young man slowly turned around, but the Alpha wasn't looking at him. Akabayashi watched the buildings they passed, the people outside of the car, living their daily life. He knew these streets could hold sorrow, but also opportunities.

It all came down to looking in the right places.

Next to him, Izaya stayed silent.


End file.
